Welcome to the
community
With the help of our communities in cities across the country and beyond, we provide a forum for patients who want to join in the fight to find treatments and cure for PKD.
Connect with us to find out how you can make a difference in the lives of thousands in the U.S. and millions worldwide.
San Antonio Community Meeting
Exploring Living Donor Kidney Transplant
Join us for an informative and empowering community meeting designed for patients, caregivers, and supporters interested in learning about living donor kidney transplants and the paired kidney exchange process. Matthias H. Kapturczak, MD, PhD, Director of Abdominal Transplant Program at Methodist Transplant Institute will lead our discussion.
Whether you’re considering donation, waiting for a transplant, or simply want to learn more, this meeting is an excellent opportunity to connect with others.
Bring your questions!
EVENT DETAILS
Tuesday, February 11, 2025
6 pm – 7:30 pm
In Person
For questions about local events and activities, contact Mark Ruffin at sanantonio@pkdcure.org.
Meet our Guest Speaker
Matthias H. Kapturczak, MD, PhD serves currently as the Director of the Abdominal Organ Transplantation Program at the Methodist Transplant Institute overseeing the strategic direction and operational management of the Abdominal Program, ensuring the highest standards of care and innovation.
Native of Poland and Germany, Dr. Kapturczak obtained his degrees from the Free University of Berlin, Germany. He completed his internal medicine residency and nephrology fellowship at the University of Florida in Gainesville and transplant nephrology fellowship at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Prior to moving to San Antonio, he served as an Assistant Professor of Medicine and Surgery at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Dr. Kapturczak has been an invaluable member of Methodist transplant team, demonstrating exceptional leadership, clinical expertise, and a commitment to patient care. With 30 years of experience in medicine and over 20 in transplantation, he has consistently pushed the boundaries of excellence in our program as the Medical Director for the Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Program for the last 15 years. Under his leadership, the Methodist Transplant Program became the largest live donor kidney transplant program in the country and the largest single center kidney paired exchange program.
He is a member of several professional societies including the American Society of Nephrology and the American Society of Transplantation. With a reputation for excellence, Dr. Kapturczak has been honored with the National Kidney Foundation’s Research Fellowship and Young Investigator award as well as the 2017 San Antonio Business Journal Health Care Heroes Award in the Outstanding Health Care Executive – Hospital-Based category.
San Antonio Community— In the news!
SA community gathers for 21st Annual Walk for Polycystic Kidney Disease
Watch here
The Walk for PKD aims to bring community together to help save lives
Watch here
2nd Grader Heads to School with a NEW Kidney & Liver
Watch here
University of Texas Health San Antonio
8435 Wurzback Road, Ste 302
San Antonio, TX 78229
210-450-9800
Clinic Director: Ashley Garcia-Everett, MD
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, also known as UT Health San Antonio, is a leading academic health center with a mission to make lives better through excellence in advanced academics, life-saving research and comprehensive clinical care. Our UT Health San Antonio Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) clinic is located on the 4th floor of the large UT Medical Arts and Research Center (MARC) multispecialty facility in the San Antonio Medical Center. We offer onsite laboratory, imaging, dietician/nutrition and pharmacy services. Every patient at UT Health San Antonio benefits from our multi-disciplinary approach with on-site access to more than 25 subspecialists. Our board-certified nephrologists have expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of polycystic kidney disease and its complications. They are knowledgeable in both ADPKD (autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease) and ARPKD (autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease). Our comprehensive approach to PKD includes a thorough hour-long initial assessment which typically includes laboratory, imaging studies and genetic testing. We will assess your current level of kidney function, discuss prognosis, and over the first few visits formulate a plan for intervention including but not limited to: drug therapy, lifestyle modifications, dietary considerations and plans for monitoring. While PKD has no known cure, our goal is to delay progression of kidney disease with evidence-based assessment, treatment and management with the most upto-date therapeutic options available. With advanced kidney disease, we are fervent advocates for pre-emptive kidney transplant and have a strong relationship our affiliated University Transplant Center. We have a special interest in pediatric-to-adult transitions in PKD care. Let us partner with you on your journey with PKD.
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Registration for the 2024 Walk for PKD is now open! Find your walk at walkforpkd.org. |
The PKD Foundation is excited to the announce the newest cohort of Centers of Excellence, Partner Clinics, and Pediatric Clinics. If you are looking for the right healthcare providers to help you manage living with PKD, visit our Centers of Excellence page to learn more about the program and to find a Center of Excellence, Partner Clinic, or Pediatric Clinic.
There’s a new way ADPKD Registry participants can step up to provide hope today, and for future generations. The nation’s first dedicated ADPKD Registry is now also one of the first patient registries of any kind to integrate patient-provided health records. Share your health records through your provider’s online portal with a few simple steps on the ADPKD Registry.
Now, as always, the PKD Foundation is committed to our mission of giving hope, advocating for patients, and building a community for all impacted by PKD. We'll continue supporting our community by providing important resources and timely updates on social media. If you have questions or need help navigating this unprecedented health crisis, we are here for you. Email or call (844) PKD-HOPE.
Mark Ruffin
PKD Connect Ambassador
I volunteer as the San Antonio Community because of my wife Patti’s medical history of PKD (hers and her family). By engaging critical partners here in San Antonio, I can help others faced with the challenges of this disease, and improve chances of finding a cure. Without others engagement, nothing happens!
Patti O’Grady Ruffin
Fundraising Ambassador
My paternal grandmother, father, two uncles, and two sisters lost their battle too young to PKD. After two years on dialysis due to PKD, a generous coworker came forwarded to donate her kidney to me in December, 2005. I have been blessed with this new lease on life and retirement (2009); and I knew I needed to step up as the volunteer Ambassador for the San Antonio Walk for PKD for 14 years. Now I have shifted my volunteer efforts as the Volunteer Fundraising Ambassador for San Antonio Community in an effort to ensure a better life for all living with PKD. A Cure is Our Finish Line. When people ask me why I volunteer, I have three words: best paycheck ever.
Diane Biery, MD, MBA
Walk for PKD Ambassador
After completing my undergraduate degree at Texas A&M University, I graduated from Southwestern Medical School and completed Residency training in both Internal Medicine and Anesthesiology at the University of California San Francisco. After transitioning from private practice in 2012, I served as the Chief Quality Officer at a six-hospital system in South Texas before joining the Methodist Healthcare team as Chief Medical Officer at Methodist Specialty and Transplant Hospital in 2016. While serving in that role I was blessed to be able to support a world class kidney and liver Transplant program.
My family suffers from PKD and both my husband and daughter are affected. As someone whose loved ones are at risk, I am indebted to all those who work to strive for a cure while supporting those during their journey with kidney disease. My husband is a 20-year survivor of a successful living donor kidney transplant performed at MSTH and my daughter is taking Tolvaptan to prolong her kidney function. Both of these life-saving treatments were made possible by dedicated professionals supported by the volunteer community.
Now that I am retired I am joining the PKD community as a Co-Ambassador for the San Antonio annual PKD walk. It is my privilege to pay it forward and help make a difference in others’ lives.
Page last updated November 2022
