Stage 4 - How Did This Happen?

Late fall 2018, we learned dad had quickly declined to stage 4 kidney failure. The first thing I thought was, how? He was seeing a nephrologist due to his heart surgery and diabetes as a precaution as there could possibly be a decline in function and a need for some intervention. So again, how did this happen? There is no definite answer. Nobody wants to "blame" anyone or anything. I strongly believe it is from a medication, however, I am not a doctor. I do know, someone (or even a few) have missed the severity of his condition.

What will reverse this and how can we help? Well unfortunately, it was now too late. He would be sent to a kidney clinic team for some extra support and hopefully a plan.

I was not able to attend the first clinic appointment, but quickly learned, once a kidney is in failure, there is no help. There is no fix, no medication that can "heal" a kidney. Once the damage is done, it's done. What now? How long do we have to figure out a plan. Transplant must be the best option I would assume right?

We are told that according to statistics, my dad has approximately a year before he will

need dialysis or a kidney transplant. Okay - so a bit of good news. Let the researching begin, I will get myself tested immediately. A quick call to my doctor and I'm an exact blood match to my dad - woohoo. He has a follow-up appointment in late January 2019. Perfect - lets get the paperwork started.

Fast forward to January, dad is really not feeling well. He is retaining alot of fluid. This is not a good sign. We know its his kidneys. This means its putting extra strain on his newly fixed heart. He is doing absolutely everything possible to keep himself as healthy as can be. It feels like he's taking 5 steps forward, and then 3 steps back. I just want to help - we all do. But it seems that nothing is text book simple when it comes to dad.

Why is he continuing to decline?

Unfortunately, this is a question that nobody can answer.