transplant does not last forever.
Quote from: st789 on June 07, 2007, 06:48:14 PMtransplant does not last forever. Depend on what age you get it... depends on alot of things actually... it could. Of course in most circumstances it don't... but it an last a long time... and anytime off dialysis and living normal... is good enough for me.
I have grown up around KD. PKD being the culprit. I have seen the good, the bad and the very very ugly side of both dialysis and transplant. My father died at 41 yrs after only 10 years of dialysis. In that time everything that could be thrown at him was. He was also a home haemo patient so I saw it first hand. He had two failed transplants that only lasted a few weeks. He also gave PD a try. He was very compliant but his body wasn't!My point is, I have made my decision to take a chance on a transplant after every thing I have seen. What every way you look at it... its ugly. Renal disease is ugly and for life. Dialysis and transplants are only treatments. But if a transplant works for a while to give me a more 'normal' life I am going to give it a go. The whole transplant process has improved so much in 25 years and I believe it will lengthen my life. It is a personal choice and everyone is different. Some of us will do very well on long term dialysis and some will not. I don't want to see which one I am. I will take the chance at a transplant and see what happens. Wish me luck. Waiting....waiting.....waiting.... Is that the phone?
Yeah it was the phone Wattle, but it was just some bloody Indian Telemarketer !
I know this is kind of an old thread, but I hope you don’t mind me adding my comments.. I also find myself not wanting to get on the transplant list, again. I have already had one transplant, donated by a friend. It didn't last very long, due to I couldn't pay for the pills. I was worried about this before the surgery, but everyone like the social workers and everyone said to just get it and worry about that stuff later. My rejecting kidney swelled up to 3 times the normal size and had to be removed, it nearly killed me. Now everyone, including my Doc, is bugging me to get back on the list. The transplant center is four hours away. I don’t have a car. I can’t even make it to my transplant evaluation, let alone leave at a moments notice. They also want to see you every week for a while after. This was a problem last time as well. All things considered, I just don’t think it is worth it to me. People think I am crazy, they think when you get the transplant it’s a cure. Well, we know that is not true! At my age, 35, a twenty year transplant would only last to 55. Then I would need number three. If it only lasts the average of 3 to 5 years like usual, then I would need lots of transplants. People have no idea how hard it is to be disabled, suddenly you get a kidney and you are no longer disabled. You will lose medicare, and or state Medicaid, at least I did. I lost my disability too. Suddenly you need a job to live, it is very hard to get a job, a good job, after being gone from the workforce for years. No recent references. There are many factors people just don’t understand, unless they have been there. I have, and it wasn’t that great.And I hear some saying that there are places to get your pills from, cheap or free. Well, I checked that. Didn’t work. Why? Well, the Doc wouldn’t write me a prescription refill. He wanted to get paid for it, I had no insurance anymore, so free pills with no RX is worthless. It’s certainly not as easy as it sounds. I am not trying to stop anyone from getting a kidney, especially young people, but keep in mind what may happen to you after. There’s a lot to think about.
Epoman felt the same way and chose not to have a transplant. You may change your mind in time. It is your choice to make.