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Hubby had kidney removed because of cancer. We found the right medication for his high blood pressure but his creatinine levels are still uncontrollable. Suggestions on where to find help understanding this? We are still in shock of the cancer diagnosis and surgery in Febuary and he is still having a difficult time dealing with it all.

I would greatly appreciate any direction, guidance, educational advice on Coping, understanding medical test results, etc.

[Beads]

Not a doctor, and I don’t have that much experience here, but no one else has commented so here goes.

I had a kidney removed last December, same as your husband, kidney cancer. My GP did routine blood tests in March, sodium and potassium levels were perfectly normal, urea and creatinine were rises, eGFR was returned at 41. I had a message from the doc saying my results were ‘deranged’, to make sure I kept myself hydrated and test again in however long it was. I usually don’t have any problems with drinking 2L a day, but figured I should up it a bit if results suggested I wasn’t drinking enough. Re-test showed similar results for sodium and potassium, slightly lower but still raised urea and creatinine, eGFR of 50. Like a total numpty I thought I was meant to be heading for a ‘normal’ eGFR, i.e. the higher the better, so I upped the liquid again. GP was shocked when I told her, I checked with the urologist and was told to drink normally.

So from my observations, if the remaining kidney is working properly, the urea and creatinine are reflections of how much water is being drunk. If your husband’s levels are constantly changing are the samples being taken at the same time of day, if he tracks his liquid intake, is that relatively constant? These will make a difference to the results.

His levels of urea and creatinine will be higher than they were with 2 kidneys as obviously the filtration function has been halved. I’ve had a look around the web and can’t find what higher levels of creatinine do and whether they have deleterious effects on the body, or whether they’re just used as an indication of how well the kidneys are functioning. eGFR is the one I think the docs look at, it takes more than one factor into account.

Further thinking: creatinine is a byproduct of protein metabolism, having eaten a large meat based meal the night before blood samples taken may affect the amount in the blood. It’s used for muscle building and can be taken as a dietary supplement to increase athletic performance.

Hope that helps, I’m relatively new to this journey as well.

[Hidden in reply to Beads]

Thank you Thank you!

We were literally thrown into this. The NP called us Monday January23 . They had the urologist appt made for Wednesday the 25; at that time the cancer was a golf ball. When he had surgery the following Wednesday, February 1, it was a softball and completely consumed his kidney and ureter. He had turned 51 January 12.

We know the levels are supposed to be higher because he has only one now. However, after his appt today, his blood pressure was still elevated and on the rise since his last 3 visits. They increased his medicine(Enalapril). The old faithful for everyone else(Lisinopril) did nothing for him.

They want him to increase water and to stop taking Goody Powders. He already has 10-12 bottles of water a day because he works outside sweating all day and still increase from that. I'm the meat eater. Occasionally he will eat chicken or a porkchop. Our diet is good; I had gastric bypass and he generally eats what I eat.

Now, he will have to cut back to part time, per Dr. We were just getting out of the financial hole from the initial surgery, tests, etc., and he's got this stress on him too. Our NP suggested it may be time to think about checking disability for him. Walking the 5 stairs to our front door is becoming a physical chore for him sometimes too. More labs were done today.

[Beads in reply to Hidden]

I was told diabetes and high blood pressure were the two main kidney damagers, and when you stop to think about it, shoving large glucose molecules through the filter and using more pressure than necessary would cause damage. So, yes, he needs to get the BP under control.

If he’s sweating through physical labour, then yes, he’d need to drink more. Another thing endurance athletes do is weigh themselves, before and after workouts, to make sure they’ve managed to keep hydrated. Does he lose weight during the working day?

The kidneys make erythropoietin, the hormone which makes the body make red cells, if that’s not happening then he’ll likely become anaemic, it’s one of the things they should test for when they do blood tests.

And that’s as far as my understanding goes. I’m truly saddened by your financial situation, I can understand the paying system of medicine for elective procedures, but having grown up with a universal system, for anything life threatening or even wellbeing threatening, having to go into debt to feel halfway well is something I can’t get my head around. Keep in touch and let us know how you get on.

[Darlenia]

I hope your hubby's new labs show good results. I agree with what Beads said. My hubby has one functioning kidney (kidney transplant) and his egfr is around 50 and his creatinine is around 1.8. His team is happy with the numbers. Sometimes one kidney will expand and indeed perform the functions of two, but that doesn't always happen. Meanwhile, because your hubby now only has one kidney, it's also easier for blood pressure to rise. So, yes, it's important to keep blood pressure under control; high blood pressure inside the kidney makes it harder to function. Many types of blood pressure meds are available, I suspect your hubby's doctors will soon find the right one(s) for him. I also like the recommendations re anemia and hydration. I suspect your hubby's number will soon stop bouncing around. One kidney does work twice as hard, but a normal lifespan is definitely available - we're so lucky to have a spare with kidneys, eyes, ears, etc. It may not be a "perfect" situation to lose any of these, but living good life is still there. If possible, check with the National Kidney Foundation - they may be able to help you with the bills. With you at your hubby's side, I suspect your hubby will stabilize. Blessings.

[Hidden in reply to Darlenia]

Darlenia,

Thank you for your kind words and positivity. I'll look into all yalls suggestions and look into the egfr. That is new to me. I try to be as educated as possible with everything medical. Momma and daddy's stuff as well as his.