FILTERS FOR IMPROVED BLOOD PURIFICATION FOR KIDNEY PATIENTS

Patients with kidney failure are in survival mode while waiting for a kidney transplant. This can take up to three years, during which patients have to go to the hospital three times a week for dialysis to clean their blood. A tedious process, but essential for their survival. To make this therapy more bearable, Prof. Dr. Dimitrios Stamatialis developed a new filter for improved blood purification. Together with Michel Simons, he founded UT spin-off M3Nephron to change the lives of kidney patients.
 
Kidney failure is one of the most common chronic illnesses worldwide. Yet, the current situation for kidney patients is dire. Their weeks consist of going to the hospital three times for dialysis. “Imagine this,” says Dimitrios. “A kidney patient goes to the hospital, where they connect them to the dialysis machine. It takes around three to four hours for the therapy to remove the toxins and the excess fluids. Afterwards, they have to wait for a bit to reach a stable condition before they can go home. So before the treatment, they felt sick because of the toxins, but afterwards, they still feel sick because of the high removal of the toxins and fluid imbalance. And two days later, it’s the same thing all over again.”

That is a huge strain on their personal lives, but also on society as a whole. Michel adds: “There are approximately 4 million people worldwide who try to survive like this, and yet their mortality remains high. Their lives are on hold because they cannot work anymore. Furthermore, treatment costs between €80,000 and €120,000 a year per patient. You can imagine the strain this has on health care and society as a whole.”

Mixed matrix membranes

When the Nierstichting (Dutch Kidney Foundation) opened a call for innovations for better dialysis, Dimitrios didn’t have to think twice to participate. “In 2008, we had been working on the concept of mixed matrix membranes for biotechnology applications at the University of Twente. When the call of the Nierstichting came, we started with the first PhD project to develop new membranes for dialysis that we could test in the lab. Over the years, supported by grants of the Dutch Kidney Foundation, Health Holland, EU and NWO and others, we kept developing these membranes, always with the patients at the back of our minds. In early 2025, we reached the point where we established M3Nephron, an official UT spin-off for bringing these new filters to the market.”

Better outcome

Their mission is clear, according to Michel. “We want to give patiënts their lives back. That can be done with our mixed matrix membranes, as the efficiency of removal is far better than the current dialysis filters. Besides better dialysis, it would be easier to do at home because our filters do not require installing a reverse osmosis system (to demineralize water, ed.), and they could be used in portable machines. That means patients can dialyze more frequently, resulting in better outcomes. An added benefit of our filters is that you need to use less water. Currently, you need hundreds of liters of good-quality water. With our filters, 5 liters of tap water could be enough, because you can reuse and regenerate it.”

Building the company

Now, the team is working towards their minimal viable product (MVP). Michel: “We’re really building the company now, from developing our business plan, developing our first product, to setting up our marketing strategy. We’re ready for the world to know what we’re working on. That’s why we’re also focusing on building our team and a strong network, which is crucial for success. There are a lot of steps we need to take - like regulatory approval - before we enter the market. But with the right partners and funding for clinical validation, we believe that we could have our first product hit the market in 2030. That’s when we can really start to change lives for the better.”