Just been diagnosed with stage 3 kidney disease(routine blood tests l as Nov started it off) and have been reading up on diets etc. So far my GP is relying on blood tests,( next one end of March. Have had cancer (lung) 7 years ago and easy cleared 2 years ago. Having had a lot of symptoms for ages but not realizing what they meant should I push for a referral to a specialist at this time.?????
Recent diagnosis of kidney disease - Early CKD Support
Recent diagnosis of kidney disease
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My suggestion is to go to the davita.com website and register for a free Kidney Smart class in your area. You will have a lot of information provided to you and learn what you need to in order to ask pertinent questions when you get an appointment with a nephrologist (Kidney Specialist). That same website will also provide you with many kidney-friendly recipes to get you started on a healthy meal plan.
Hi Sharonlesley, Mr Kidney has some good advice on getting questions together. To answer your question, I would absolutely push to see a nephrologist. I'm at stage 3 and the first year of diagnosis I saw my kidney specialist quite a few times. Now that I'm in my second year, I am seeing her every 6 months unless any issues come up that I need to discuss. This is hopefully a long term partnership. That is how she views it as well.