Posted 10/20/2010 3:53 AM (GMT 0)
my dad always told me it would be a long time before he needed a transplant... but he's been going through all the steps recently of trying to find a donor. I was diagnosed with ADPKD (same as he has) when i was in 10th grade. We know i'd had it long enough for it to spread to my pancreas, but weren't sure how far along i was. In ultrasound pics they can only see two or three big ones, but i have horseshoe kidney, many more were visible on the CT scan, and i experience a lot of pain from it. As my dad keeps going through this process, i'm worrying more and more about my future. Those with horseshoe ADPKD are more likely to go through kidney failure earlier, and my dad just turned 50 and doesn't have the horseshoe kidney.
i just worry that there's a time limit on my life and that with all my other health problems, we won't be able to find an acceptable match or i won't be eligible for surgery when the time comes. my best friend finally got to the top of the transplant list and was told she wasn't healthy enough. she went through dialysis and everything and she's my source of strength, but at the same time, i worry that we'll lose each other. even worse, i worry that i'm losing my dad and he doesn't want to tell me because he's afraid i'll panic... problem is, i'm panicking because he's not being open with me...