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Posted 4/9/2009 11:26 AM (GMT 0)
confused  My husband has ESLD and is critically ill.  He was in the VA last week and when we left, the doctor told us both that his only hope was a transplant and that I may need to call Hospice for help with him.  I wish she had not said that in front of him because it made him so depressed, but it may have been something he needed to hear. His cirrhosis was caused by alcohol and years of doctor prescribed pain pills taken for an injury received in Vietnam.  He feels so bad every day and is so depressed and I don't know how to help him.  I tell him not to give up and that he has to fight this every day, but it is getting harder for him to do.  We have contacted our family doctor and have faxed his information to the Univ of Kentucky transplant center for an appointment for a transplant evaluation, but I am not sure he will last that long.

Can anyone tell me if this really could be close to the end or could he bounce back for a while.  He wants to go to New Hampshire to see his sister who has stage 4 breast cancer and I plan to take him if he can make it. 

I read the posts on this website and see that some have lived for a while with ESLD and pray every day that he will. 

Posted 4/9/2009 3:09 PM (GMT 0)
Hello Parisdr, It is a mixed blessing when the doctors say things like that in front of the patient. Especially the ones who have continued to drink. On one hand you don't want them to give up and go into depression but on the other hand .....sometimes it takes a shock like that to get them to stop drinking and start them to take control of their healthcare........meaning play a bigger part of it. Maybe the doctor was trying to scare him straight.

By all means try to get him evaluated for a transplant....I would get a second opinion from a private doctor anyways....but if he is still drinking or has drank in the last 6 months they may not even evaluate him. Most transplant centers require documentation from AA or some sort of alcohol counseling treatment before they will even consider a patient. But I understand that there are a few out there that don't.

If in fact it is time for hospice to be called in.....then that means there is nothing more left for him but make him comfortable.........so if that's is the case I would take him to see his sister if possible.......

Take care.......thoughts and prayers........
Posted 4/9/2009 5:04 PM (GMT 0)

Parisdr, PG has bumped a bunch of educational threads to the top.  You might want to read over those to get a better idea of what to expect.  I think the big question is whether your husband is still drinking and, if he's stopped, how long has it been since his last drink.

It really is a rollercoaster ride.  Since liver disease is such an individual one, every patient is different.  This makes it near impossible to predict how long a person has left or if he will make it to transplant.

Remember to take care of yourself during this trying time.

Posted 4/9/2009 10:59 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the replies.  He hasn't had anything to drink for quite some time and we are working with our private physician to get him to the Univ of KY transplant center for an evaluation.  If they say no....then I will keep trying others until I find one that will take him.

I am planning to take him to see his sister as son as I can.

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