Three groups of patients on renal dialysis, largely veterans in VA Hospitals, were, by means of MMPI profiles, compared with one another, with a group of predialysis renal patients, one third of whom were veterans, and with Mayo Clinic general medical patients. There was remarkable similarity between the mean profiles of the renal patients, which reflected in Caldwell's view, a profound fear of death and of helplessness, and a sense of catastrophic loss of bodily functions--greater than that found in general medical patients. Data suggest that the East Orange renal dialysis group (N = 77), older, more variable, and longer on dialysis, manifested a greater sense of personal distress than was found in the other renal groups.