The American Society of Nephrology’s (ASN) Kidney Week, formerly known as Renal Week until 2011, is almost here. The “world’s premier nephrology meeting” (and largest meeting of nephrologists from around the world) will take place November 1st – 5th in Philadelphia, PA: the City of Brotherly Love and home of passionate fans (like me) who ardently support the Philadelphia Eagles, Phillies, and more. The overarching goal of Kidney Week is to improve the care of patients with kidney disease. It is also a time to learn from one another, exchange ideas, share new data, get updates on the newest advances in kidney health and care, reunite with friends and collaborators, and meet new ones. Kidney Week is fully in-person this year, without any virtual or hybrid component.
The “Early Program” be held on Wednesday, November 1st with seven full-day sessions that require a separate registration fee and cover a wide range of topics including an encore of kidney pathology, transplant, glomerular diseases, and dialysis – and a debut for three new topics: nephrocardiology, genetics, and multi-omic analyses of tissue microenvironments in the kidney (!).
Each morning of the annual meeting will kick off with a plenary session which will feature the presentation of awards and state-of-the art lectures like “How Do You Feel? The Molecules That Sense Touch” by molecular biologist and neuroscientist Dr. Ardem Patapoutian and “Antibodies Against Emerging Infectious Diseases: Global Collaborations" by structural biologist and immunologist Dr. Erica Ollmann Sapphire. Poster and oral abstract sessions will be held 10 a.m. to noon and 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., Thursday – Saturday, respectively. This year’s meeting includes two high-impact clinical trial sessions on Friday and Saturday and a brand-new abstract category: “Augmented Intelligence, Digital Health, and Data Science.”
ASN has developed a helpful “onsite guide” which includes a Schedule-at-a-Glance that can serve as a starting point to plan your days. In addition to this, it can be helpful to look at the full program before you arrive. The Kidney Week app also includes a personalized scheduler and interactive maps. At any given time, there are numerous sessions simultaneously underway. If you have a particular area of interest, the Kidney Week learning pathways can help narrow down the options. It can also be refreshing to walk into a session that’s nowhere near your “learning pathway” and try something different off the menu. For me, that’s probably something like “Chloride Channels: Physiologic and Pathophysiologic Relevance.”
Aside from the numerous basic/clinical science, clinical practice, translational, and special sessions, the ASN Communities Lounge will be active 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Exhibition Hall. Attendees will have the opportunity to not only meet renowned photojournalist and filmmaker Ed Kashi, who is dedicated to the documentation of social and political issues, but also to discuss a wide range of nephrology topics. If you’re looking for some competition, the ASN Innovation Tournament will debut this year and you can start casting your votes here now. The annual Fellows-in-Training (FIT) Bowl will be held as usual in two parts: elimination rounds, followed by semi-finals/finals.
The last Kidney Week held in Philly was in 2014 and Philly remains a vibrant city with tons to do when you need a breather from nephrology-talk. The 47th annual Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show, held November 3rd through 5th (also at the Pennsylvania Convention Center), will showcase the work of nearly 200 artists. The well-known Reading Terminal Market is about a minute from the meeting venue and hosts more than 80 merchants with any type of cuisine you can think of (as well as arts/crafts, gifts, plants, etc.). Uwishunu is a great resource to find something that’s right for you.
And the best Philly cheesesteak? I’m eagerly waiting for the reopening of Jim’s Steaks after a devastating fire, though you can’t go wrong with any of these options — there are vegan and vegetarian options available too.
Safe travels and see you in Philly for #KidneyWk 2023!
Dr. Farouk has no conflicts of interest to report.
Image by Marish / Shutterstock
