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How CKD is treated right now
Controlling blood pressure. Two types of blood pressure medications, called ACE inhibitors and ARBs, have been the go-to treatment for chronic kidney disease for years. They don't just lower blood pressure overall, they also ease pressure inside the tiny filtering units in the kidneys themselves, which helps slow down damage over time.
SGLT2 inhibitors. Two medications, dapagliflozin and empagliflozin, actually started out as diabetes drugs. But it turned out they also meaningfully slow down the loss of kidney function, even in people who don't have diabetes at all.
Finerenone. This one was approved in 2021 for kidney disease linked to type 2 diabetes. It works differently from the others, it blocks a pathway that causes inflammation and scarring in the kidneys. It later got approved for heart failure too, in 2024.
Sparsentan. Approved in 2023, this medication isn't for kidney disease in general. It's specifically for IgA nephropathy, one particular cause of kidney disease. That's a good example of how treatment increasingly depends on what's actually causing someone's kidney disease, not just the diagnosis of "kidney disease" on its own.
What researchers are studying now
Finerenone keeps showing up in new research. In May 2026, the FDA agreed to a faster review to decide whether it should also be approved for kidney disease linked to type 1 diabetes, based on a trial showing it reduced an important marker of kidney damage. Separately, a June 2026 trial found that finerenone also slowed down the loss of kidney function in people with CKD who don't have diabetes at all, a group it isn't currently approved to treat. If that keeps holding up through the rest of the approval process, it could mean a lot more people become eligible to take it.
The stages of chronic kidney disease
CKD is measured in stages, from 1 to 5, based on how well the kidneys are still filtering blood. Stage 1 is the mildest, and stage 5 means the kidneys have mostly stopped working. Most people are first diagnosed somewhere around stage 3 (split into 3a and 3b), and that's usually the point where treatment shifts from just keeping an eye on things to actively managing the condition. Knowing your exact stage matters for more than just understanding how serious things are. It's often the main thing that decides whether you qualify for a particular clinical trial.
How to find a CKD study
You can search chronic kidney disease studies on our platform, filter by location and stage, and see whether you meet the basic criteria before applying. The process usually takes a few minutes, and a coordinator follows up afterward to walk you through next steps.
For example, a study at the University of Alberta is currently recruiting people with CKD and type 2 diabetes to see whether semaglutide helps with excess fat and liver health.
Common questions
What is chronic kidney disease? Chronic kidney disease happens when the kidneys slowly lose their ability to filter waste and extra fluid out of the blood. It usually develops quietly, without symptoms, until it's already fairly advanced, in fact, about 9 out of 10 adults who have it don't even know. It's closely connected to diabetes and high blood pressure, and if it isn't managed, it can eventually lead to kidney failure.
Can chronic kidney disease be reversed? Usually not completely, but slowing it down is very possible, especially if it's caught early. That's actually the main goal behind the medications mentioned earlier, slowing things down rather than promising a cure.
Can chronic kidney disease be cured? Not right now. CKD is something you manage long-term rather than cure. The goal of treatment is to protect however much kidney function someone still has, for as long as possible.
What are the symptoms of chronic kidney disease? Often, there aren't any, especially early on, which is a big reason it goes undiagnosed for so long. When symptoms do show up, like tiredness, swelling, or changes in urination, it usually means the disease has already progressed further.
See CKD clinical trials recruiting near you:
Chronic Kidney Disease Clinical Trials