Octavia Spencer and Sofia Vergara Want Women To Ask for This Simple Kidney Function Test (Exclusive)
It could be a lifesaver—especially if you have diabetes or high blood pressure
What if a simple urine test could warn you about hidden kidney damage before symptoms even appear? It can—and that’s exactly why Oscar-winning actress Octavia Spencer, 55, and Modern Family star Sofia Vergara, 53, have joined forces with the Detect the SOS collective, a public health initiative encouraging Americans, especially those with type 2 diabetes or high blood pressure, to ask their doctors about the uACR kidney function test. In an exclusive with Woman’s World, the actresses share their deeply personal reasons for championing this potentially lifesaving screening.
So whether you have risk factors for kidney damage, such as unmanaged diabetes or high blood pressure, or you simply want to stay proactive about your wellness, we break down everything you need to know about the uACR test.
Why Spencer and Vergara champion this kidney function test
Spencer’s connection to this mission is deeply personal and stems from her own health journey. “I have type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, and I realized that if you have either one of those, it could lead to kidney damage, which could also lead to cardiovascular events,” Spencer told Woman’s World.
Woman's World Answers
While Vergara doesn’t have high blood pressure herself, the condition hits close to home. “My mother has been experiencing high blood pressure for a long time,” says Vergara. “A lot of people in my family have it.”
Vergara also spoke about the prevalence of both diabetes and high blood pressure in her community. “I’m Latin, and the Latin community is one of the biggest communities that have type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure,” says Vergara. “So it was like the perfect mission for Octavia and me.”
Catching early signs of kidney disease is crucial
You might think you’d know if you had high blood pressure or type 2 diabetes, but that’s not always the case. These conditions are masters of disguise, often showing no obvious warning signs until they’ve already done damage. (Learn more about silent disease symptoms.)
“I didn’t know that I was diabetic or had type 2 diabetes,” says Spencer. “The only thing that was an indicator was that I was thirsty all the time. So again—silent. High blood pressure [is] super silent.”
Given that these health conditions don’t always come with a warning, the stars both say early detection is important and a key part of the Detect the SOS initiative. “Early detection means that the individual has the power to change the course of their health,” says Spencer. “When we detect something too late, the outcome is unknown. But if you know about it in advance, then you can shape your own future.”
“So we are excited because we’ve joined this collective to be a part of this health mission,” adds Spencer. “I mean, Boehringer Ingelheim, the American Diabetes Association, National Kidney Foundation, WomenHeart [and] Mended Hearts–all of these institutions are a part of getting the message out.”
What is the uACR kidney function test?
“The uACR test is a really incredible test,” says Payal Kohli, MD, FACC, a Harvard-educated preventive and noninvasive cardiologist. “It’s a very simple screening test. It’s a urine test, and it really looks for a protein called albumin.” While this protein is normal in the bloodstream, it shouldn’t be present in the urine.
“When we find albumin in the urine, this can be really an early sign of chronic kidney disease (CKD),” Dr. Kohli adds. “It’s almost the kidneys giving us a warning that they’re sort of stressed out, so to speak. When you find the presence of albumin in the urine, you check a uACR [test]. If it comes out to be elevated, it doesn’t just tell you about chronic kidney disease. It also tells you about increased risk for heart disease, and that’s really the connection between the heart and the kidneys.”
“I like to call them best friends,” adds Dr. Kohli. “If one is unhappy, the other tends to be unhappy as well. It’s a great way for us to really think about starting to find those patients early, not just early in the course of their disease, but actually even before their symptoms start to manifest.”
The link between kidney disease, diabetes and high blood pressure
“When you have type 2 diabetes, you essentially have extra blood sugar swimming around in your bloodstream,” says Dr. Kohli. “That extra blood sugar can damage the small blood vessels of the kidneys and the small little filtering units of the kidneys called the nephrons. And this damage happens in the background, silently, long before anyone develops symptoms—even long before sometimes you see a drop in the kidney function. The kidneys are really good at compensating and keeping everything going, even when they’re having this kind of damage and leaking protein into the urine. So diabetes really sets you up for having chronic kidney disease.”
Dr. Kohli explains that high blood pressure can damage the small blood vessels in the kidneys over time. That damage may lead to scarring and make it harder for the kidneys to properly filter waste from the blood.
Who is a good fit for a uACR kidney test?
Ready to take charge of your kidney health? We asked Steven Quay, MD, PhD, a physician-scientist and public health expert with decades of experience in early disease detection and preventive screening, how to know if the uACR test should be on your must-ask list.
Dr. Quay says people who should take the uACR test include those living with type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure. “Those two conditions are common, they’re often silent for years and they’re two of the strongest drivers of chronic kidney disease,” he adds.
Dr. Quay says that beyond people living with type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure, uACR testing is “smart” for people who:
- Are over age 60
- Have prediabetes or metabolic syndrome
- Have cardiovascular disease, including a prior heart attack, stroke or heart failure
“I’d also include people with a family history of kidney failure, anyone with known kidney disease or anyone who has had abnormal kidney labs in the past,” adds Dr. Quay.
“For a truly low-risk person, routine testing is optional,” continues Dr. Quay. “But many people who believe they’re ‘low risk’ are simply ‘not yet diagnosed.’ That’s the reality of modern metabolic health. If you’re older, overweight, have prediabetes, smoke, have a strong family history or have had any prior kidney or cardiovascular red flags, it’s reasonable to ask your clinician whether uACR belongs in your annual check-in.”
Spencer and Vergara’s call to action
“It’s super easy,” says Vergara. “It’s just a urine test, nothing complicated. They don’t have to sedate you or do anything crazy [like] put you in a machine. Unfortunately, it’s still not something that, routinely, doctors tell you to do, even if you have high blood pressure and diabetes. So we need to tell people that there is something that you can use—a tool that you can use that is easy to help you stay healthy.”
“When I learned about it, I just asked my doctor,” adds Spencer. “He said, ‘Absolutely.’ And then, of course, I was nervous waiting for the result, but it was actually great to know that my kidneys were functioning as they should be.”
Want to hear more from Vergara and Spencer on this important topic? Catch their “Mission SOS” commercial during the Super Bowl on February 8.
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