Heart, lung and kidney failure are growing epidemics in Canada and around the world, fuelled by lifestyle, environmental and genetic factors. The personal, social and economic consequences of organ failure are profound:
- Combined costs to the Canadian health care system are more than $35 billion per year.
- Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in Canada and alone incur $20 billion per year.
- Heart failure outstrips the costs of all other causes of disability, illness, and death in Canada and throughout the world.
- Lung failure is the number one reason for emergency room visits in Canada.
- The intensive care unit, the most expensive locale for health care, is primarily populated by patients with heart, lung, and kidney failure.
- Kidney failure is increasing dramatically, and is closely linked to diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and heart disease.
For these reasons, the PROOF Centre’s work is urgent and of global significance. We aim to decrease the personal, social and economic costs of treating these diseases. By moving towards a personalized medicine approach, we can enable clinicians to create patient-appropriate treatment plans. Most important, we can reduce the financial burden on the healthcare system by preventing disease and improving health.