Sunday, December 16, 2007

Kidney Chronicles: Continued

Hello dear friends and family,

It's been about 2 months since our last report - as always, I expect to have more news in another day or so, but of course that does not happen! Bob continues to do fairly well on dialysis, although there have been some ups and downs with his blood pressure, fluid levels and blood sugars that keep us entertained. The kidney transplant team at UCSF is still hesitant to move forward to a final OK, despite assurances from the heart transplant group that he will benefit tremendously from a new kidney. We were told this week that he is certainly at moderate risk for the surgery - better than high risk - but that a transplant sooner would be much more successful than later, since his heart is about as good as it can be at this point. All the additional tests that have been done have had acceptable results, so Dr. Rame' of the heart transplant team plans another visit to the kidney transplant committee to again make the case for Bob's acceptance for surgery. In the meantime, my brother "donor Dave" has a few more tests to repeat from last year, and will do those after he returns from Peru at the end of this month.

In spite of all this drama, we are starting to dare to hope that this coming year will bring good news and a new start. And we did get one medical project accomplished: both his eyes have had successful cataract surgery, and in about 3 more weeks he'll get new glasses and be able to drive again! The better vision has already improved his spirits. Life will be nearly perfect when racing resumes and he can enjoy every detail on the tv screen!

Keep the good thoughts and wishes coming - we appreciate all your support more than you can imagine. Happy Holidays to all -

Cherie and Bob ( aka Irving aka RJ)
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)
RJ/Bob/Irv is a 61-year-old beloved husband, father, uncle, brother, motor racing fanatic, and Livermore resident who received a heart and kidney transplant in February of 2010. Bob's recent years have been defined by his health, which forced him into early retirement. Unfortunately, many of his days were spent in a dialysis center or at various medical appointments, primarily due to his living with diabetes for over 40 years. Numerous were panic visits to various Emergency Rooms all over California for treatment of chest pain. But now no more dialysis and no more late-night dashes to UCSF! The main focus of Bob's family, friends, and doctors has been a prompt transplant, so that he can get back to traveling with his Sweetie, driving fast cars, enjoying great music and laughing with his friends. This blog will function as a way to communicate with all interested parties and to keep everyone informed. And hopefully it can serve a great purpose also, in making people more aware of the importance of organ donation and how each life saved has a positive effect on dozens of related friends and relatives.