My long time friend and the Best Man in our wedding, Ron Richards, called Friday evening to alert me that Martha Silva was facing open heart surgery on Saturday morning.

Ron & Debbie Richards, photographed with Irene, Martha & Bill Silva on June 7, 2008

Irene and I drove to Modesto and visited with Bill and his family following Martha’s surgery.  She’s resting comfortably and we hope on the short road of recovery…!!

Later in the day we met my mom and dad, and my brother, Greg, his wife Colleen and their daughter, Megan, for church services and dinner before returning to the coast.

Please join us in prayer for Martha’s quick recovery and restoration.

Caminando con Fé

Dave

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We received word this week that Irene’s Amyloid level remains in REMISSION!! 

“Both kappa and lambda are elevated with a normal ratio = still in remission. I believe they are both elevated due to her renal failure.”  (from Doctor Damon’s UCSF notes in Irene’s file).

I don’t undertand how to interpret the ratios but the following is directly from the chart that we received in an email format:

> PARN 3-12-09 09:12 KAPPA/LAMBDA RATIO 1.26 0.26-1.65
> KLR
> Perfrm’d at UCSF/China Basin Lab, 185 Berry, San
> Francisco, CA 94107
> KAPPA LT CHAIN, FREE h*44.1 mg/L 3.3-19.4
> KAPF
> LAMBDA LT CHAIN, FREE h*34.9 mg/L 5.7-26.3
> LAMF

The KAPPA test three months ago was 33; it’s obviously elevated now at 44 but we’re told the “normal ratio” is being monitored very closely by the UCSF team.

Also, today Satellite Dialysis Center reported that Irene’s blood counts from the blood draw taken on Wednesday are all within range…in every category!!!!

Irene came home this evening completely wrung out, with severe leg and foot cramps (from today’s dialysis treatment) and is also very nauseated.

Thanks for caring,
Dave

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www.ustransplant.org/

We spent most of today at UCSF going through an intense educational session related to the kidney transplant process.  We learned that there at 77,000 people in the U.S. awaiting kidney transplants, and the minimum waiting period is 7 years for Irene’s blood type … unless there is a family member or friend that donates the kidney.

We also learned the many inherent risks and side effects associated with kidney transplant:

New kidney rejection
Immunosuppressive Medications to prevent and treat rejection
Bleeding
Increased cancer risk (skin cancers, lymphoma, PTLD)

Irene and Dr. David Wojciechowski

There was a very interesting comment made by Dr. Wojciechowski in the examination room.  He said that he had been reviewing Irene’s chart before entering the room and told his medical team that based upon Irene’s records, all that she has gone through and what the process may entail, he was biased and came into the examination room thinking that he was going to recommend against going forward with the transplant.  After meeting Irene, however, he changed his mind based upon the following:

Age
Demeanor and strong will to live
Current health status, despite the chronic nausea and fatigue

There are two donor options:

The Living Donor (family members or friends)
Cadaver Kidney Transplant (brain death)

A prospective donor for Irene must be at least 18 years old, in excellent physical health, with blood type “O”.

If anyone is interested in learning how to donate their kidney to Irene, please contact us and we’ll start the process.

We’ll see what the future holds … and thanks for caring.

Caminando con Fé

Dave

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