Clinician researcher Brendon Neuen is transforming kidney disease treatment
In a rare achievement, clinician researcher Brendon Neuen had three major studies published on the same day, across the three most prestigious medical journals globally.
Led by Brendon, an associate professor, the studies showed that a medication called finerenone, which has been used to treat people with chronic kidney disease, can ‘benefit many more people than it’s currently being prescribed for,’ including in reducing heart disease progression.
The findings further support the use of finerenone as a foundational treatment of chronic kidney disease.
Brendon acknowledges that the published work is ‘a really great achievement.’
“It reflects the impact of the work and how this work is going to hopefully forever change how we treat kidney disease worldwide and be incorporated into every major guideline in most countries,” says Brendon.
“We’ve done something that will help a lot of people for a long time, and I’m proud of the quality of the work and that it’s going to stand the test of time,” he says.
Director of Kidney Clinical Trials at Royal North Shore Hospital (RNSH), Brendon’s goal is for ‘anyone across the North Shore who has kidney disease to have the opportunity to access a clinical trial.’
Brendon sees significant value in clinical trials as they are ‘the best way for us to identify new treatments’ and enable access to potentially effective medications before they become available and subsidised on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS).
“This is really important at the moment because there are so many new treatments, not only for kidney disease, but cancer and other conditions, where the PBS isn’t subsidising them, but they’re accessible through a clinical trial,” he says.
With government funding support for clinical trials being limited, Brendon says ‘we are always happy to speak to people who may be interested in supporting our work.’
“The data showed that in terms of return on investment for every dollar that’s spent on clinical trials, we gain at least $3 to $5 in terms of improvements in healthcare delivery.”
Brendon grew up on the North Shore but has worked in various places. Working in North Queensland for some time prompted a deeper interest in kidney disease.
“I was really struck by the burden of kidney disease up there, particularly in younger people and among Indigenous Australians,” he says.
“I realised the best way to make a difference at scale was to do research to find new or better treatments for kidney disease.
“It is a real privilege and a pleasure to be able to do this work, because when we do these kinds of big international trials, you can help many more people than you can ever treat as an individual specialist,” he adds.
Alongside his role at RNSH, Brendon works at The George Institute and is an associate professor at the University of NSW.
“I’m really lucky that I get to do all of these things,” he says.
“It makes my week really fun and variable.”
As for what’s next for Brendon, he aspires to ‘make sure that every patient across the North Shore who has kidney disease has an opportunity to access new medicines through clinical trials.’
“I want to keep thinking about designing and leading the kinds of clinical trials that deliver us reliable evidence on new medicines so that we can reduce the burden of kidney failure in the community, particularly on the North Shore.”
