Google
 

March 30, 2007

Kidney Dialysis and Mum


It's been quite a few weeks since I last updated the blog. Things have been absolutely crazy in the past few weeks. Before I have the time to write down every single thing happened, I have to admit that the biggest incident is the fact that my mum


I went home to see my mum and find out that she has started the kidney dialysis in January without telling me. It was a big shock to me because I wasn't expecting her to start the dialysis without telling me. Even worse, I didn't find out until the day before she got admitted to the hospital again for a 24-hr long dialysis. I knew that she was going to go on dialysis when I went home but I just didn't expect that the dialysis treatment has begun back in January.


I remember when she told me about the news on a Friday afternoon, I was strolling on the street after having a lunch gathering with my old colleagues. When I asked her whether she had time to catch dim sum the next day, she told me that she was not available. After a couple of more conversations, she finally told me that she was going to go to the hospital for dialysis the next day.


Knowing that my mum has already begun the dialysis process made me feel very sad. I know that it's very common these days for people to undergo dialysis. However, I felt distressed when it actually happened to my mum. Once she starts the dialysis process, she won't be able to discontinue it. Her health will only be stabilized or do downhill from this point forward. It's no possible for her kidneys to start functioning properly all of a sudden.


To make the matter worse, my sister told me that my mum isn't compatible with the dialysis machine in the hospital because of the thickness of her abdominal layer. Therefore, she has to start doing it manually at home for 3 times each day at the end of April. I just can't imagine her being very mobilized when it happens. She probably has to be bed-ridden for most of the time. There is also a danger of infection when she does the dialysis by herself at home.


My god-sister suggested taking my mum back to mainland China for a kidney transplant. However, my father and sisters have rejected the idea because of the potential risks involved in the process. I also happen to know some other people who have had kidney transplant in Chain. There are both positive and negative cases. Since I am a pessimistic person, I tend to think about things that could possible go wrong.


Now, we only have two options left: One is to let her do the dialysis 3-times a day at home. The other is to look for a possible match among our siblings. We know that it's highly unlikely for her to get a kidney transplant in Hong Kong if she just gets on the transplant waiting list. Given her background and age, she is highly unlikely to get high priority on the transplant list.

No comments: