how to live with the kidney cancer ?
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Taking care of your remaining kidney:
If you have one kidney removed, you will have no ill effects if the other one is working normally. One kidney is enough to filter your blood to keep it clean and healthy.
It is important to take care of your remaining kidney, though. Firstly, if you smoke, you need to try to stop. Giving up smoking can be very difficult, especially if you have smoked for many years. You will need a lot of will power and support from your friends and family but it will be worth it.
A high protein diet has been linked to kidney cancer. Protein containing foods include
Some people try high doses of vitamins to try to treat their cancer or stop it coming back. There is no evidence that this works. In fact, with kidney cancer, you could do more harm than good. Large doses of vitamin C could damage your remaining kidney, or cause kidney stones, which are very painful.
If you drink alcohol in moderation it will do no harm. But heavy drinking will cause kidney damage eventually, and so it is helpful to cut down or stop drinking.
If you have one kidney removed, you will have no ill effects if the other one is working normally. One kidney is enough to filter your blood to keep it clean and healthy.
It is important to take care of your remaining kidney, though. Firstly, if you smoke, you need to try to stop. Giving up smoking can be very difficult, especially if you have smoked for many years. You will need a lot of will power and support from your friends and family but it will be worth it.
A high protein diet has been linked to kidney cancer. Protein containing foods include
- Meat and fish
- Eggs
- Cheese, butter and milk
- Beans and lentils
Some people try high doses of vitamins to try to treat their cancer or stop it coming back. There is no evidence that this works. In fact, with kidney cancer, you could do more harm than good. Large doses of vitamin C could damage your remaining kidney, or cause kidney stones, which are very painful.
If you drink alcohol in moderation it will do no harm. But heavy drinking will cause kidney damage eventually, and so it is helpful to cut down or stop drinking.
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Cancer affecting both kidneys:
Rarely, people do get cancer in both kidneys. Once you have had cancer in one kidney, there is about a 1 in 20 chance (5%) of getting cancer in the other kidney.
It is possible to have both kidneys removed if necessary. But your surgeon will try to remove only the tumours from the kidneys. The surgeon will try to leave enough working kidney tissue to keep you healthy.
If you have both kidneys completely removed, you will not make any urine. You will have to have kidney dialysis. This is a way of getting rid of waste products and excess water that the kidneys normally filter out of your blood. There are 2 different types of kidney dialysis
Using a kidney dialysis machine:
You need to use the kidney dialysis machine about 3 times a week to keep the blood healthy. To have dialysis, you have 2 needles put into your arm. One carries blood to the machine, where it is cleaned and excess water is removed. The other needle carries the cleaned blood back to your body. Most people have to travel to a dialysis centre 3 times a week to have this treatment. The dialysis itself takes up to 6 hours or so. As you can see, having this treatment is time consuming. It will take up quite a bit of your time every week.
Continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD):
CAPD is a type of dialysis that you have on your own at home every day. You have a permanent tube (catheter) in your tummy (abdomen). Every day, you attach a bag of fluid to the tube and run it into your abdomen. Then, you leave the fluid inside you for several hours. While it is in there, the fluid collects the waste products and extra water that you would normally get rid of in your urine. After a set time, you drain the fluid out again, together with the waste products and extra water. You then put another clean bag of fluid in.
An advantage of this type of dialysis is that you can manage it yourself at home. So it is easier to carry on with your usual daily routine. But you can get infections inside your abdomen from the tube. You have to be very careful about hygiene when you are changing bags. But however careful you are, you will almost certainly get the odd infection if you are managing this type of dialysis for any length of time.
Rarely, people do get cancer in both kidneys. Once you have had cancer in one kidney, there is about a 1 in 20 chance (5%) of getting cancer in the other kidney.
It is possible to have both kidneys removed if necessary. But your surgeon will try to remove only the tumours from the kidneys. The surgeon will try to leave enough working kidney tissue to keep you healthy.
If you have both kidneys completely removed, you will not make any urine. You will have to have kidney dialysis. This is a way of getting rid of waste products and excess water that the kidneys normally filter out of your blood. There are 2 different types of kidney dialysis
- Filtering the blood through a kidney dialysis machine
- Continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD)
Using a kidney dialysis machine:
You need to use the kidney dialysis machine about 3 times a week to keep the blood healthy. To have dialysis, you have 2 needles put into your arm. One carries blood to the machine, where it is cleaned and excess water is removed. The other needle carries the cleaned blood back to your body. Most people have to travel to a dialysis centre 3 times a week to have this treatment. The dialysis itself takes up to 6 hours or so. As you can see, having this treatment is time consuming. It will take up quite a bit of your time every week.
Continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD):
CAPD is a type of dialysis that you have on your own at home every day. You have a permanent tube (catheter) in your tummy (abdomen). Every day, you attach a bag of fluid to the tube and run it into your abdomen. Then, you leave the fluid inside you for several hours. While it is in there, the fluid collects the waste products and extra water that you would normally get rid of in your urine. After a set time, you drain the fluid out again, together with the waste products and extra water. You then put another clean bag of fluid in.
An advantage of this type of dialysis is that you can manage it yourself at home. So it is easier to carry on with your usual daily routine. But you can get infections inside your abdomen from the tube. You have to be very careful about hygiene when you are changing bags. But however careful you are, you will almost certainly get the odd infection if you are managing this type of dialysis for any length of time.
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Diet and lifestyle on dialysis:
There can be problems with both types of dialysis. But they mean you can lead a more or less normal life without a working kidney. You have to stick to a special diet that is low in protein, salt and potassium. And you have to keep a very close check on your fluid intake. Without your kidneys to filter out extra water, you can easily become overloaded with fluid. That can cause heart or lung problems.
So, life without a kidney means that you have to pay attention to what you eat and drink. But many people manage very well with dialysis.
There can be problems with both types of dialysis. But they mean you can lead a more or less normal life without a working kidney. You have to stick to a special diet that is low in protein, salt and potassium. And you have to keep a very close check on your fluid intake. Without your kidneys to filter out extra water, you can easily become overloaded with fluid. That can cause heart or lung problems.
So, life without a kidney means that you have to pay attention to what you eat and drink. But many people manage very well with dialysis.