Kidney Precision Medicine Clinic

The Kidney Precision Medicine Clinic treats people with kidney disease that may have an underlying genetic component. We start by identifying patients who may benefit from a genetic evaluation, then we perform the appropriate genetic tests, provide pre- and post-test counseling to patients and family members, and provide them with a management plan based on their diagnosis.

Candidates for Genetic Testing and Treatment

You may benefit from genetic testing if you have a strong family history of kidney disease or any of the following:

• Alport syndrome
• Blood or protein in urine, or family history of either
• Cystic kidney diseases
• Early age of onset of kidney disease of unknown cause
• Fabry’s disease
• Inherited kidney stone disease (Cystinosis)
• Nephrotic syndrome resistant to treatment

Why Choose the Kidney Precision Medicine Clinic?

We provide preventive and treatment plans for people who have a genetic cause of kidney disease. There are several reasons why patients will benefit from coming to the clinic:

• People with specific gene variants need to be seen by other specialists. Screening for cancer and the impact on other organs may be needed because some genetic disease affects more than one organ and may increase the risk for specific cancers. We can evaluate your needs and refer you to the proper specialists.
• If you are an African American kidney donor or kidney donor with a family history of kidney disease, you may benefit from genetic testing. We can evaluate your risk of developing kidney disease in the future after you have donated a kidney.
• We can perform pre-transplant genetic testing to evaluate if kidney disease can recur after a transplant. Transplant patients with an unknown cause of end stage kidney disease can benefit from this testing.
• We can identify people who may benefit from implementing gene-based treatment.

Services We Provide

• After your initial evaluation, you will be tested for a specific gene variation.
• If any variation of clinical significance is detected in your genetic testing results, we will discuss this with you and provide you with genetic counseling.
• Your treatment may be altered and individualized based on any gene variations.
• We will refer you to the appropriate specialists for further investigation or testing if needed (cardiology; neurology; endocrinology; ophthalmology; ear, nose and throat; oncology; kidney transplant team and urology).

Meet the Director

The kidney precision medicine clinic is led by Divya Shankaranarayanan, MD. Dr. Shankaranarayanan is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in the Division of Kidney Diseases and Hypertension. She is board certified in internal medicine and nephrology. She received additional clinical and research training in transplantation medicine and molecular biology from Cornell University in New York.