When I was in my early 20s, my father was hospitalized with early uremia as a result of polycystic kidney disease. The physician at that time told me that I was lucky. He said that PKD ran in groups of five and since my father was the fifth one in the family with the disease, I would never need to worry.

My father subsequently died at the young age of 48 and many, many more members of the family were diagnosed with PKD. Just like the increased numbers in my family, the knowledge about this disease has grown. Other misinformation that is often transmitted is that PKD is only passed through the mother or that it can skip generations. Be assured - if you do not have PKD, your children will not either. PKD is an equal opportunity disease. It afflicts all ages, races and both sexes. It can be such a virulent form that replacement therapy is needed at an early age, or be so mild that the affected person is not aware of having it.

If you have PKD, monitor your blood pressure and keep it under control. Have kidney infections treated promptly. Untreated infections can further damage already compromised kidneys. If you are not under the care of a physician, seek out a nephrologist. Call the office and make sure the physician knows what PKD is.

Learn all you can about the disease. The well-informed patient is far ahead of the game. If you don't have a source of information, contact the Polycystic Kidney Research Foundation (PKRF) at 1-800-PKD-CURE. This is the only foundation dedicated totally to the research of PKD and dissemination of information.

Support the PKRF. With the help of the 600,000 afflicted persons in the United States, we can work to find a cause and cure.