KUALA LUMPUR: More and more younger people are being diagnosed with chronic kidney disease requiring dialysis in Malaysia.
Health Minister Khairy Jamaluddin said there were over 40,000 kidney patients in Malaysia, with over 8,000 new patients diagnosed annually since 2018.
"If this upward trend continues, we expect some 106,000 kidney patients who would need dialysis by the year 2040, of which 30 per cent will be aged under 45.
"Prevention is a huge challenge for the country's healthcare. Public awareness including early education and youth engagement, as well as the Community Organ Donation Drive (CODE): Life, are important in producing a healthy generation," he said during the World Kidney Day launch which was streamed live on National Kidney Foundation's Facebook page.
He said the knowledge gap or lack of awareness of the disease was identified at three levels, namely, the community, healthcare staff and health policymakers, who were more focused on efforts to address other diseases like respiratory illnesses, diabetes and heart disease.
The prevalence of end-stage renal disease (ESRD), the most advanced stage of kidney disease, where dialysis or transplantation is required to sustain life, has been on the rise.
He said kidney disease was a global health crisis, caused by among others diabetes and hypertension, with 16 per cent of the world population or 2.6 million patients needing dialysis.
Themed 'Bridging the Knowledge gap to Better Kidney Care', this year's celebration, held at the national and tertiary education levels, was a cooperation between the foundation, Malaysian Society of Nephrology, Health Ministry and Higher Education Ministry.
An online health forum on organ donation titled 'Mini Code Life: The big gift' was earlier held to discuss kidney health issues and transplantation.
Kidney recipient Hazmi Salihudin, 25, from Kajang, had a second chance in life after being diagnosed with chronic kidney disease four years ago.
Like some patients, Hazmi showed no symptoms until a later stage where over 90 per cent of the kidney function was gone.
"At 21, I was fairly active as a university student in New Zealand (commerce graduate) and would normally hit the gym in the morning. I suffered the symptoms of kidney failure only two months before being diagnosed.
"At one point my oxygen level dropped to 40 per cent and the doctor had even asked my parents to prepare for my death," he said.
After a long and meticulous screening process, he said he was able to receive kidney transplantation from his mother, which saved his life.
Other panellists in the forum were nephrologist Dr Muhammad Iqbal Abdul Hafidz from University Teknologi Mara's Private Specialist Centre, kidney donor Dayangku Intan, organ donation ambassador Imam Muda Muhammad Asyraf Mohd Ridzuan and Dr Yusuf Abu Shamsi as the moderator.
Dr Muhammad Iqbal said organ donors comprised of deceased (including brain dead patients) and living donors.
"Living donors can donate one kidney and portion of the liver, while someone who has died may donate many more organs like heart, lungs and tissues with the consent of their family members."
Despite the increasing number of chronic kidney disease cases, the organ donation rate in Malaysia was still relatively low, he said.
The public can learn more about organ donation and make a pledge through the NTRC (National Transplant Resource Centre) and help save lives, he said.