Health Update

Phew, every time I think I am going to write a health update for my dad, it seems like something new comes up, and I want to keep notes on everything, if only for myself.

So...  in April he had an MRI because he was complaining about bad back pain and would sometimes have a hard time standing up after bending over.  It turned out he has hydronephrosis, which means one of his kidneys is swollen.  Not really sure how this was overlooked while he was under the care of a nephrologist, but we can only go from here.  We went to see a urologist, and he called for an ultrasound and CT.  It turns out there is some sort of mass, which the doctor thinks looks like lymph, pressing on his ureter, which is what is causing the kindey backup.  For his part, he said he could put in a stent to help drain the kidney.  That is a procedure that would be done under GA, and would have to be redone every 2-3 months.  As far as the mass, we needed to see an Oncologist.

One more doctor added to the mix,  :/  The Oncologist ordered a biopsy, and we found out the mass is a follicular lymphoma.  Apparently not dangerous in and of itself but causing functional problems in my dad's case. He suggested a course of rituxan, which is sortof of like a mild, and usually side effect free, form of chemo.

I put the options to my dad, and he just keeps repeating that he wants me to make all the decisions.  I felt unsure about the stent because of the GA, but after talking it over with his regular doctor, he said the stent is a really minor procedure and what he would call a "no brainer".  OK, great, so that is scheduled for May 27th.

I ended up really glad I scheduled it, because my dad's blood work now shows he is dropped to Stage 4 renal disease.  He is also barely eating and sleeping most of the day.  I really think he might be in the early stages of kidney failure.

As an aside, I set him up for more substantial respiratory testing, and his COPD is classes as mild to moderate.  Some good news at least.

That is it for now.  Still planning a visit to a neurologist down the line.  More to come....