New NEJM Research Covers Kidney Disease, Prostate Cancer and Heart Stents

The journal, widely regarded as one of the most influential medical publications in the world, posted details of the new issue on 6 August 2026. The three studies cover finerenone (a drug that blocks a hormone receptor linked to kidney damage and heart stress) in chronic kidney disease without diabetes, apalutamide (a hormone-blocking cancer drug) used around the time of surgery for prostate cancer, and a sirolimus-coated balloon (a tiny inflatable device coated with an anti-scarring drug, used to open narrowed blood vessels).

The finerenone findings come from the phase 3 FIND-CKD trial. Phase 3 means the drug has already passed earlier safety and dosing tests and is now being assessed in a large group of patients to confirm whether it works — the stage just before regulators consider approving a treatment. Chronic kidney disease (CKD) affects the kidneys’ ability to filter waste from the blood and is a long-term condition managed rather than cured.

The prostate cancer data come from the phase 3 PROTEUS trial, which looked at apalutamide given in the perioperative period — that is, before and after surgery. Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men in the UK, according to NHS England.

So far, none of these treatments have been announced as newly available on the NHS, and Kent residents should not expect immediate changes to local prescribing on the basis of journal publication alone. New treatments typically pass through approval by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and a cost-effectiveness review by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) before reaching NHS patients.

Anyone with concerns about kidney disease, prostate cancer, or a heart or vascular condition should speak to their GP in the first instance, or call NHS 111 for non-emergency advice.