Wang Qiang (alias) grew up in Laowangzhai village, Hunan province, and was born in 1985, at a time when the lead and zinc mines started to develop in the province.
Two decades of lead and zinc mining in the area has taken a major toll. The population of the villages, most of who are ethnically Miao, has experienced severe health impacts as a result of heavy metal exposure.
Wang became ill and was diagnosed with uremia, a complication of chronic kidney disease. In the last few years, the medical treatments cost his family hundreds of thousands yuan. Currently, he gets three hemodialysis treatments per week, which add up to more than 10,000 yuan per year. If he does not get the treatments for three days, he will suffer from symptoms of fatigue and dizziness. 

王强（化名）自幼在老王寨村长大，生于1985年，恰逢当地铅锌矿和随之而来的尾矿库的兴起。

大四那年，王强自觉浑身乏力，脸色发黄。家人带他四处求医之后，他最终被确诊为尿毒症。几年来，家中为此已花费数十万元。如今，他每周血液透析三次，医保报销后，仍需每年负担1万多元的医疗费。倘若他三天没有进行血液透析，就会出现乏力、头晕和无法行走的症状，死亡就会向他逼近，找到肾源换肾，是王强现在的唯一希望。