Friday 14th May 2021 I go into hospital to have a partial kidney removal as they found a lump in my left kidney, they said it is 3cm so they are going to remove it, they are not sure if it is cancer or not but the surgeon told me when he gave me a call that they will do all necessary tests on it once it has been removed as due to covid restrictions I could not go into hospital to have biopsys taken, this was December 2020, now covid restrictions are easing I'm finally going to have the operation which hopefully they will tell me if it's cancer or not, I am a bit nervous as I have never been in hospital for an operation so do not know what to expect, I know it will be different to having hospital appointments. Things are running through my head like how will I feel after the operation, what things can or cannot do? Will I have to be bed ridden till I'm healed etc, I'm a active person and find it hard to sit in once place for a long time
Partial kidney removal: Friday 14th May 202... - Kidney Disease
Partial kidney removal
All valid questions. When the surgery is over and you are ready for discharge you should be provided a complete post-operative set of instructions that should answer your questions. My suggestion is to follow them and as you meet with the surgeon after the surgery they will monitor your progress and let you know when it will be safe to begin more activity.Best of luck.
Nothing but good thoughts for you. I’m glad they’re going to be able to pull it out and get it tested.
Jayhawker
My mum recovered well from a full nephrectomy so logic says partial should be better though it's understandable you're nervous. The key afterwards is obviously to look after your kidney(s)/self.
For kidney, that's largely diet and wellbeing with good advice on this forum and elsewhere.
Nigeu49: prayers and positive thoughts. We all get s little anxious when we face.new events and especially ones that are so important. All your questions are important ones, so ask them of those on charge of your care. I've always found nurses knowledgeable about after care. Keep us posted and know that there are many of us in this forum rooting for you and wishing you the best.
Thank you all for the answers and kind words that you gave me, I shall keep you all posted on how it all went and how I feel after, my wife has made strict rules once I have came home from hospital that I cannot do any heavy work and she has stopped me from helping the neighbours out.
I am recovering from a full nephrectomy only 6 weeks out. Yes, there are restrictions but overall you will feel better. Prayers for the lump not to be cancerous and a speedy recovery. Keep us posted.
I had a surgery 9 years ago- it was my first ever in life. They removed my whole right kidney because both of the Urologist I went diagnosed the lamp as cancer and it wasn't possible to do just partial removal because of the location. (Un)fortunately turned out it was NOT cancer (as they originally diagnosed- without performing biopsy!). My family doctor saved my sanity when I got this sudden diagnose (I went for some tests/screenings to see options for uterine fibroids removal and they found that mass on my kidney!)! He told me that if a person has to have a cancer then this is the least dangerous to have because there is that option to partially or fully remove the kidney and still live normal life with just one! And this is what I do now! It took few months to fully recover after surgery (I have quite long scar , but in your case it should be smaller since they will do just partial). Just take your time to do whatever it takes to recover good and you will have just normal life afterwards- you can go back to gym, do whatever you want...Just like you never had the surgery.
Good luck!
Nigey,
Sending you good thoughts and prayers. Everything will go fine.
Focus on " the prize"- it will be over, good results and loved ones waiting for you when you come out of the procedure.
Bet
🙏💛
Hi Nigey49, I have been monitoring this blog for a short time as a newbie. Your question hit home for me, so I had to respond. In 2009 I had a partial nephrectomy on my right kidney after a biopsy to help determine why I was passing protein. The biopsy found that I had renal cell carcinoma. The surgery lasted about four hours, including time for testing two nodules, which proved to be cancerous. In addition to the nodules, they also removed tissues, one rib, etc., from the area to ensure cancer had not spread.
I was in the hospital for three days after my surgery. As Mr. Kidney said, my doctor provided all of the post-surgery instructions and restrictions. Things as you might expect, like no lifting, no driving, or strenuous activities. I am also an active person. After the surgery, I could walk as soon as I felt comfortable. The day after I got home, I walked around the block and added more distance every other day or so.
I had an ultrasound on my kidneys and general torso area every year for five years to ensure my kidneys had recovered and nothing abnormal was happening. The partial nephrectomy did not solve my CKD, but I am sure that finding cancer saved my life. I am 73 years old, CKD stage 4, but I have had no noticeable indications that there is anything wrong. If not for GFR, BUN, and Creatinine numbers, I would not know anything was wrong. My GFR just dropped from 27 to 20. I had been aggressively working on my diet to help turn things around.
Before my previous GFR of 27, my GFR had dropped to 20. So, I am starting all over again with some additional modifications to my diet. I have also increased my exercise routines.
You'll be fine after your procedure. Follow your post-surgery instructions, and don't push things. Please keep us posted on your recovery. My thoughts are with you.
Thank you for your kind words and I will be sure to keep you updated, I had a endoscopy done in October 2020 as I was suddenly losing weight and they found a mass in my stomach so they sent me to have a full body CT scan that's when they noticed a lump in my left kidney they told me it was only 3cm and at the time they gave me 2 options full kidney removal or partial removal depending if it fitted the criteria, I waited a week and I got a call off a surgeon in Norwich hospital saying that I pass the criteria for a partial and that he noticed a small lesion which was 1cm and that they would remove both in the same operation, time went pass because they were waiting on other results which I had to go to Chelmsford hospital to have an endoscopy/ ultrasound which surprisingly my stomach turned out to be fine with no mass or nothing, a week later I got the call saying the hospital wants me in on Friday 14th May 2021 for my operation to removal part kidney and lesion, I have been reading up and I remember the doctor telling me on the phone that because its a small lump it won't grow rapidly, I'm not saying it is or is not cancer but some information says they usually take biopsys first to see what it is, am I right? It's only 12 hours left before I'm due to make the 1 hour 30 minute trip to the hospital but I will keep you informed on how.my operation went and I will keep everybody else informed, I hope you are feeling a bit better and thank you again for your kind words
Yes, they generally take biopsies first to determine if cancer is an issue. However, there are times when there is evidence of cancer, but there are no lumps. During surgery, any lumps or abnormalities found will be removed and tested to determine if they are cancerous.
I had my surgery in Florida at Jackson Memorial. I was told every effort would be made to save my kidney, but if they could not find the source of my cancer, they would have had to remove the entire kidney. Fortunately, my surgeon did find the two tiny nodules that were the source of my cancer. My CT scans did not show any growth or anything abnormal about my kidneys. My biopsy did find cancer, but my nodules were inside of my kidney. You will be fine, and we'll be looking forward to hearing about how things went.
Hello everybody Just a quick update, I went in hospital this morning well arrived there at 7.45 am, had my assessment and they took some bloods, done an ecg to make sure my heart was fine etc,
Went down to theatre at 11.30am got prepped ie basically knocked me out,,,, woke up at 3.30pm the operation lasted 1 hour 30 minutes so I presume the rest of the time is waking up.
It all went good they removed the lump and a small lesion, the nurse said I was strange as when I woke up she said the first thing I asked was can I go to the toilet, well anyway it's nearly 7pm here and I'm pain free, had the doctor round and he said if I'm mobile tomorrow I will be going home in the afternoon
WONDERFUL.
Glad to hear things went good for you. Take it easy now.
Got home from hospital last night, body feels like it's been a few rounds with Mike tyson lol full of gas still but I'm slowly getting out of bed walking around before resting, I know it will get better in time. Here is a picture of my war wounds
It's been a week now since my operation, still sore but I am managing by walking around and not doing anything too strenuous, also been resting loads along with deep breathing like they told me, I do find it hard to get comfortable at night times no matter how many pillows I use to prop my head up I always wake up with a back ache, I end up going downstairs and sleeping upright in a chair, things will get better in time
Hello allSo I finally got the letter off the surgeon who done my operation after 6 weeks, it said the tumour they removed was cancer and they managed to remove it but it was larger than the 3cm they saw on the CT scan but smaller than 4cm that was his exact words in the letter, he also recommended that I have a CT scan every 6 months for the next 5 years which I suppose is a good thing to keep a check on things, the nurse told me that I should have a blood test too but nothing is mentioned in the letter about one, should I get in touch with my own doctor about it? I have not even been told what I am or what I am not allowed to eat now I had a partial kidney removal, I just feel full once I eat breakfast or 2 bits of toast.
I can’t believe you weren’t told it was cancerous for so long after the surgery and when you were told it was via a letter rather than an appointment of phone call. Definitely set an appointment to talk with your primary care about all of this. Someone from the medical field needs to diligently monitor your renal situation as well as the possibility of cancer showing up somewhere else in your body.Jayhawker
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