Oral phosphate binder therapy is considered a 'tower of strength' in the ever-expanding armamentarium of drugs used to treat abnormal mineral metabolism in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and use of these agents early in the course of CKD is gaining much interest. Recent data from a randomized controlled study by Block et al. challenge this strategy, raise doubts about its safety and indicate the need for additional studies of hard end points.
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P. Evenepoel declares associations with the following companies: Amgen (consultancy, honoraria for speaking, grants), Genzyme (consultancy, honoraria for speaking, grants), and Shire (honoraria for speaking). B. Meijers declares no competing interests.
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Evenepoel, P., Meijers, B. Phosphate binder therapy—cracks in the tower of strength?. Nat Rev Nephrol 8, 615–616 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneph.2012.219
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrneph.2012.219
