Bayer said its cardiorenal drug Kerendia had begun reaching new patients in the United States following the Food and Drug Administration's expanded approval for chronic kidney disease associated with Type 1 diabetes. The German pharmaceutical company confirmed the drug was available to eligible patients through US pharmacies.

Kerendia, known generically as finerenone, is a selective, non-steroidal mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist. It was previously cleared for chronic kidney disease linked to Type 2 diabetes. The new indication marks the first oral therapy of its class approved specifically for Type 1 diabetes patients facing kidney decline.

The expansion addresses a longstanding treatment gap. Roughly one in three people with Type 1 diabetes develops chronic kidney disease, and clinicians have largely relied on blood pressure drugs and SGLT2 inhibitors used off-label. The American Diabetes Association has identified diabetic kidney disease as a leading driver of end-stage renal failure in the United States.

Nephrology specialists welcomed the added option but urged monitoring of potassium levels, a known risk with mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists. The National Kidney Foundation recommends regular serum potassium and kidney function checks for patients starting finerenone.

Bayer estimated the approval could broaden the drug's addressable population significantly, building on Kerendia sales that the company reported approaching blockbuster status in its most recent earnings update.