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NephCure, a leading nonprofit organization advocating to ensure that all individuals with rare kidney disease have equitable access to the care and treatments, is proud to celebrate IgA nephropathy (IgAN) Awareness Day on May 14, 2026.
This day is dedicated to raising awareness of IgA nephropathy, a rare kidney disease in which a protein called Immunoglobulin A (IgA), part of the body’s immune system, builds up in the kidneys, causing inflammation and progressive damage that can lead to kidney failure.
IgAN is one of the most common forms of glomerular disease worldwide, yet many patients still face delays in diagnosis, limited disease awareness, and barriers to specialized care.
This IgAN Awareness Day is especially meaningful. Thanks to decades of advocacy from the rare kidney disease community, there are now several FDA-approved treatments available for the first time that may help people living with IgAN. These advancements represent significant progress for patients and families who have long faced limited treatment options and uncertainty about disease progression.
In honor of IgAN Awareness Day, NephCure is highlighting educational programs and resources designed to empower patients, caregivers, and healthcare providers with accessible, up-to-date information about IgAN, treatment options, and disease management tools. Featured resources include:
- Understanding and Navigating IgAN: An Essential Handbook
- Rare kidney disease treatment options webpage
- IgAN Alliance White Paper
- IgAN Patient Stories
On May 14th, NephCure is also hosting a live, virtual panel discussion at 5:15pm ET / 2:15pm PT, taking place during our IgAN Alliance Workshop meeting in Dallas, TX. The discussion will bring together patient, clinical, and access perspectives on IgAN. The conversation will feature IgAN patient advocate, John Marsala, NephCure Specialist Dr. Shikha Wadhwani, and patient access expert Doug Paul.
The live event is an opportunity for patients, caregivers, healthcare professionals, and community members to listen, learn, and ask questions. To register for the livestream and learn more, click here.
IgAN Alliance Updates
Launched in 2025, the IgAN Alliance is a collaborative initiative focused on improving disease awareness, accelerating diagnosis, and advancing access to care for people living with IgAN. It brings together patient advocacy organizations, healthcare professionals, researchers, industry leaders, and patients to address some of the most pressing challenges in IgAN care, including delayed diagnosis, barriers to treatment access, and critical education gaps.
The inaugural IgAN Alliance Stakeholder Collaborative Workshop White Paper was completed ahead of the 2026 IgAN Awareness Day. It is titled “Overcoming the Barriers to Diagnosis and Treatment of IgA Nephropathy (IgAN),” and summarizes insights, priorities, and solutions from a September 2025 workshop, which brought together patients and caregivers, advocacy and professional organizations, clinicians, government, access experts and industry partners.
The white paper examines key challenges and opportunities in IgAN care, including delays in diagnosis and treatment, access to quality care and gaps in research and evidence development needed to better support the patient journey.
As one of IgAN Alliance’s first major initiatives, this publication reflects our shared commitment to improving care and outcomes for everyone affected by IgAN.
Get Involved
NephCure invites everyone to spread awareness on social media by downloading and sharing its IgAN Awareness Day social media toolkit. This toolkit allows the public to share awareness graphics about IgAN across social media channels on May 14, 2026. By tagging NephCure (@NephCure), supporters and patients can help amplify powerful stories and expand reach of the IgAN community.
To learn more about IgAN Awareness Day, and NephCure’s IgAN awareness efforts, please visit NephCure.org/IgAN-Awareness-Day-2026.
Thank you to our generous corporate sponsors, who are our valued partners for IgAN Awareness Day: Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Biogen, Travere Therapeutics, Vera Therapeutics, Calliditas Therapeutics, Novartis, Otsuka, and Vertex Pharmaceuticals.
About NephCure
NephCure’s mission is to ensure that all individuals with rare, protein-spilling kidney disease have equitable access to the care and treatments that offer them the best kidney health outcome possible. Founded in 2000 by a group of committed patient parents, NephCure has invested more than $40 million in kidney disease research and helped create a landscape where there are now new treatments and more than 60 interventional drug trials for rare kidney diseases. NephCure is a U.S. tax exempt 501(c)(3) public charity.
