希拉·菲茨帕特里克:透析vs. Transplant: A Due Diligence Decision

She approached staying healthy with the same vigor. Regular checkups never revealed the slightest hint of kidney disease. But in 2008, her commando-like energy started to sputter. Over the course of six months, fatigue crept in. Eventually, she struggled to swim two laps, much less two miles.

一个周末，她的父母来看她，发现她蜷缩在沙发上. 她在那里呆了一个星期. That's when everyone realized something was deeply wrong.

How did you learn your kidneys were failing?

说来话长，但最后我去萨克拉门托看了一位肾病十大赌博平台排行榜. He admitted me to the hospital immediately. 三个小时后，我在手术室里，在我的胸口插了一根导管. Two hours post-surgery I was on dialysis.

我不知道发生了什么. 十大赌博平台排行榜说我的生命危在旦夕，如果他们再等下去，我就死了. 在这方面, 我很欣赏你的快速行动, but during my entire weeklong hospital stay, no one told me that my life was going to change radically.

直到出院，我才接到一个透析诊所的电话. 那个人说:“你新的透析时间表是每周一、三、五. Each session will take about three hours.我惊呆了. I told her that I didn't understand. 她告诉我，我有三个选择:透析、肾移植或死亡. 我选择了透析.

What was life like while you were on dialysis?

被禁足很困难. My dialysis schedule meant I couldn't travel internationally. 我失去了大部分欧洲客户，这些客户占我生意的80%左右. Even traveling domestically was difficult. Some days I'd go in for dialysis at 4:30 a.m. 所以我可以在早上7点前完成.m. and could catch a plane or drive to see clients in nearby cities.

Where do your energy and determination come from?

I grew up in a large Irish-Catholic family. 我爸爸有九个兄弟姐妹. 我妈妈有四个孩子. 我的父母教我要努力工作，遵守我的承诺. 放弃不是一个选择. I also have a stubborn streak that you would not believe. 我不喜欢生病. 我讨厌有人围着我转. I told them, "If I need help, I'll call you. 与此同时，回家吧."

Were you considering a kidney transplant?

Honestly, I wasn't sure I wanted one. It wasn't for lack of offers – I had brothers, 堂兄弟姐妹和朋友站出来, 这太神奇了——但是……我担心我只是把一组问题换成了另一组. 我很担心这些药物的副作用，我需要服用一辈子.

但我愿意调查一下. 我说过我很勤奋吗? I spent 18 months researching the best transplant hospitals. 我采访了全国大约30家主要移植中心的人. Everything I saw kept pointing back to UCSF. It was head and shoulders above every other facility in the world; plus it had Dr. Nancy 亚瑟 as chair of the surgery department. She is legendary in the transplant community.

但即使在那之后, 直到一个朋友带我去参加电影的开幕酒会，我才开始持观望态度 UCSF Connie Frank Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Center 把我介绍给. 亚瑟. 我肃然起敬. 我告诉她，在研究我的移植选择时，我成了她的忠实粉丝, 但我很快就发表了免责声明，说我根本不确定自己是否想要肾脏移植. 我仍然很纠结.

In a moment I'll never forget, Dr. 亚瑟 looked me in the eye and said, "I would be honored to do your transplant," and she invited me to come see her for a consult. 我想，“哦，是的，当然! 就像十大赌博平台排行榜著名的移植外科十大赌博平台排行榜会记得在派对上见过我一样." Well, wouldn't you know that on Monday morning my phone rang? 这是加州大学旧金山分校的一名移植前执业护士打来的电话，想安排一次会诊. 亚瑟. 我满脑子想的都是，“十大赌博平台排行榜上最抢手的移植外科十大赌博平台排行榜来找我了.“当然是我参加了那次会议.

What happened in the consult to make you decide on the transplant?

I laid out my concerns about the transplant. I told her that I wanted to take the minimal number of drugs. 另外，我想要一个单独的房间. 我以为她会因为我要求太高而把我赶出去，但她说:“没问题."

Then she told me that she'd enlist her UCSF colleague, Dr. Chris Freise，也是国内最好的移植外科十大赌博平台排行榜之一，给我弟弟Terry做手术, who turned out to be a great match. I knew right then that I'd landed the "dream team.“这是一个完美的场景.

但后来你遇到了挫折.

Everything was going according to plan. My brother and I were scheduled for surgery. We had no doubt he'd pass the final physical. He is a marathon runner and one of the healthiest eaters I know. 会出什么问题??

Well, two days before the surgery, the entire thing came unhinged. Tests showed my brother had high blood pressure, 也就是说他不能按计划进行手术了. I felt the dream team slipping through my fingers. 我崩溃了. 我甚至不能谈论它. I just resigned myself to dialysis.

Yet your brother did wind up donating?

一年后，加州大学旧金山分校给我打电话. 在我不知道的情况下，十大赌博平台排行榜们已经帮助我弟弟控制了他的血压. 当他们打来电话时, 他们说他已经出色地通过了所有的术前检查，现在是安排手术的时候了. So, I hadn't missed my chance after all.

描述一下你在加州大学旧金山分校的经历.

I've been to many hospitals in my life, 我从来没有得到过我在加州大学旧金山分校得到的那种关心和专业精神.

举一个例子来说明他们是如何超越的:我的手术是早上的第一件事. 移植是一个漫长而复杂的过程，所以那天晚上9点我才回到我的房间. 到那时, 来十大赌博平台排行榜支持我和弟弟的35位家人和朋友都走了. 每个人都被告知要回家休息——我的手术做得很好.

That part was true but there was still cause for concern. I had a "sleeping kidney," meaning it didn't work right away. 最让人担心的是它永远不会起作用，移植会失败. 十大赌博平台排行榜 and nurses checked on me regularly. But one young doctor-in-training sat by my bedside all night long. Just knowing he was there made the whole experience less scary. I can still picture him sitting there, quietly holding the faith. 让大家都松了一口气的是，我的新肾脏第二天早上就恢复了活力.

As a self-employed person, did you work during this time?

绝对. 我带着iPad, 我带着iPhone和笔记本电脑去了十大赌博平台排行榜，在我的房间里建了一个便携式办公室. I kept my regular schedule of work and conference calls. 护士们甚至在我的门上贴了一张纸条，让大家知道我打电话时不要打扰我. 我的很多客户都不知道我在十大赌博平台排行榜做肾脏移植手术. 手术是在星期五进行的，到星期六的时候，我又回到了电话和“办公室”."

How do you feel since the transplant?

It's not a perfect solution but it's better than dialysis. I do struggle with how the medications make me feel. 我的一些持续的副作用是恶心，头晕，贫血，腹泻和疲劳.

我很感激我在加州大学旧金山分校的十大赌博平台排行榜们没有粉饰这件事的结局. 他们事先警告过我. 事实上, when I first met with my transplant nephrologist, he told me all the worst-case scenario gloom-and-doom stories. 第一次见他的时候，我想我再也不想见到他了! Now I appreciate that he wasn't afraid to tell me the truth.

你的后续护理怎么样?

I am constantly amazed by how closely they monitor me. 每次我做血液检查, 这是有规律的, someone from UCSF calls me with the results within two days. 我的移植肾科十大赌博平台排行榜密切关注着我的数据，并相应地调整我的药物治疗方案.

有加州大学旧金山分校的十大赌博平台排行榜密切关注我的最大好处是，我不用担心我的肾脏状况如何——我让他们替我担心.

Do you have any limitations on your life or your travel?

I'm starting to pick up where I left off. 当我旅行的时候, 我小心翼翼地在我的随身行李里放了至少一周的药物，在我的行李箱里放了两周的药物，以防我被困在某个地方. 除此之外，我还学会了调整自己的身体，在它需要休息的时候放慢速度. 但我明白了，偶尔放松一下并不是一件坏事!