UNOS Transplant Living describes dialysis as a treatment that uses a filtering machine or a special fluid in your belly to filter waste out of your body. This is usually something kidneys do. It’s important to know that dialysis only filters out waste — it can’t replace other functions of your kidneys, such as making hormones. Dialysis only does 10-15% of the work that a healthy kidney would do. For some people, dialysis is the only option for treating kidney disease. For others, dialysis keeps them alive until a kidney is found for a transplant. The National Kidney Foundation states that each hemodialysis treatment usually lasts about four hours and is done three times per week.