T - 1

Today Barbara and I head to NYC and I begin the pre-op prep. Somehow, Kate has escaped this part -- she owes me! We will not have internet access in the apartment, but will have e-mail on our phones.

I have been reflecting on this journey that began shortly before New Years and have come up with some random thoughts:

Our lives are always so busy and so full, but we are able to quickly change priorities and the things that were so important can't even be remembered.

It takes two people to have surgery and you have to be in good condition. No way could I imagine doing this alone or if I was sick.

My initial thoughts about surgery in general and doing this kidney donation was that it would be scary. Once I started to learn about it and get a handle on exactly what was going to happen, I have no apprehension or anxiety at all. Meeting the hospital staff and having confidence in them is very comforting and reassuring.

Throughout this journey I have experienced a tremendous outpouring of support from family, friends, people I hardly knew and people that I didn't know at all. Your thoughts and prayers have been very heartwarming and helpful to me.

My new friends, Jill and Emily, are donors themselves and have been very kind to answer all of my questions and offer helpful information from their experiences. This has been great.

I suspect that my next blog update will be after the operation. I will let you know where I am on the Dick Cheney pain scale.

I will try to do some Twitter updates in the interim.

Talk to you tomorrow.

T - 2 Call from the Surgeon's Office

I got a call from the surgeon's secretary that the hospital's PR dept wants me to sign a release for them to video tape the operation. This looks like it could be my big chance to get into show business. I am looking for an agent and I heard that Brad Pitt is getting kind of worried. The only risk is if one of the drapes slip, I could suddenly become a porno star.

T - 2 (Tuesday)

Today is packing for the trip to the apartment in NYC and stay at the hospital -- one of the toughest parts of this whole thing -- I never know what to pack.

It was pouring so hard that it reminded me of being in the Philippines during a monsoon in 1972.

Kate called early this morning and asked if we wanted to go to mass. So, Barbara and I and Kate and Fran went to 9:00am mass at St Martin of Toures in Bethpage. After mass the priest annointed Kate and I.

We then went to BestBuy to get a router so that we could both be on the internet at the same time. The one that I had brought finally died -- it was pretty old and needed to be updated anyway. We also went to Target and got some last minute stuff and some food.

My friend Sr. Rosie wrote a comment about constantly checking your identity at every step along the way in the hospital. This always makes me think of going for a colonoscopy and being asked for a photo ID. My first thought was about people paying someone to take their SATs, but a colonoscopy ??

The weather showed some signs of brightening up in the afternoon, but has turned dark again. We would love to be able to go out and walk.

T - 2

Yesterday, Monday, Kate and I had our final testing and cross-match at Presbyterian hospital. We still have separate teams, but did meet up a lot in waiting rooms.

First, I gave more vials of blood and urine sample, then we (Barbara and I) met with my social worker, Ilana, and she gave us the 10,000 ft overview of what will happen during my time at the hospital.

Next was a meeting with Marian, my transplant coordinator. She gave us the 100 ft version and a detailed preparation list for the surgery. Only clear liquids starting at noon on Wednesday and nothing after midnight -- not even water. Plus drinking the stuff to clean out your digestive tract. Maybe I will loose those couple of stubborn pounds from the holidays!

I can't lift anything greater than 10 pounds for a month, and no driving for 10 days - I think that has to do with drugs-- don't want to get a DUI.

Then I met with the surgeon, Dr Delpizzo. We really liked him. Now we get down to where the rubber meets the road. He said that my kidneys were both the same size and that he would take out the left one because it is easier to remove and reconnect -- longer plumbing. He uses a procedure where there is one, 2 - 3 vertical incision by your navel. He has done this procedure for his last 80 plus kidney removals. It heals faster and has less scarring -- important for picking up chicks at the beach.

He said to avoid core exercise -- no ball class for a month, but I can bike after two weeks. He also said that I was the first patient on Thursday morning and that the actual surgery is about 1.5 hours, although total time (prep, surgery and recovery room) would be about three hours. We made our follow up appointment for Thursday, 7 April, so that we can drive back to VA with Patricia and Theresa on Friday.

Then I had an EKG and was done for the day.

Throughout the various visits there was a continuing discussion of pain management. They even have a rating system with a scale of one to ten with a chart. A smiley face is one (no pain) and a picture of Dick Cheney is ten.

Another recurring theme was the bloating that you feel due to the injection of carbon dioxide to expand your stomach to make it easier for the surgeon to work. One of the major criteria for being discharged is the ability to pass gas. I found this very encouraging -- I will be out of there in no time.

We said good by to Kate and Fran and headed for a NY Deli for lunch.

T - 4

We are getting ready to leave to catch the 6:30am train from Bethpage to Penn Station. It is raining cats and dogs. More later.

T - 5

We are Cosi's restaurant waiting for the bus. Kind of a cold, damp morning, but there is a good chance that we will get to NY before the rain.

I got a call from my friend Rosie (actually, Sr Rosie) last night. She had a knee replacement this week and called to give me an update. She said that she was still nauseous from the pain killers and the morphine made her itchy. I always associate morphine with WW-II movies. I imagine that a knee replacement is much more painful than a kidney removal. I think of a kidney removal as what John Wayne would call a "flesh wound" -- where he gets back on his horse and kills 20 more bad guys and is fully recovered by the next scene.

The good news is that they let here use her Blackberry the whole time in the hospital. She has only had it a short time, but is already addicted.

I woke up in the middle of the night thinking about packing and what to bring. We have four days before surgery that look like cold and rain, then two days in the hospital and then a week that could be much warmer weather. I also need loose fitting clothes -- I am not sure how long. Plus our electronic stuff -- computers, phones, kindles, iPods and the appropriate chargers. The whole thing reminds me of doing triathlons where you need to have your swim, bike and run stuff in the right transition areas before the race.

Tomorrow we will be at the hospital most of the day, so we will try to do some Twitter updates from our cell phones.

T - 8

Eight days to go. We are trying to think of things that we will need for the trip. Loose clothes and a small case to pack (repack) for our two day stay in the hospital. Since it is my first time in a hospital, I really don't know what is needed. It is only two days, I should be able to get through with whatever we wind up bringing.

Amazingly enough, I don't feel anxious or apprehensive. I guess I have done enough research that I feel comfortable with the whole thing. Also, my health and conditioning are good (knock wood) so that makes me feel confident about the whole thing. I am looking at the recovery as a challenge to get back in shape quickly. Not pushing it, but the right combination of rest and exercise.

My kids surprised me with a Kindle yesterday. What a great idea. I am loving it!

Norm

T - 10

We have 10 days to go.

Today Barbara made reservations on the Vamoose bus for next Sunday. We leave at 10:30am.

Monday (29 Mar) will be a full day of testing and meetings at the hospital for Kate and I.

Tuesday and Wednesday we will spend in NYC -- we expect to do a lot of walking -- which we enjoy (hope the weather is good).

Thursday (1 April) we report to the hospital at 5:30am.

While we are in the hospital, I am not sure about internet access. Expect to be doing most updates on Twitter. (www.twitter.com [follow: normbarb])

T-13

Not too much new on my end. Got in a good weight lifting workout and 25 more miles of biking. I have also pushed up my jump rope workouts from 200 to 300 per day. I am hoping that improved conditioning will reduce my recovery time after the operation.

Kate is having some problems with donating her own blood for the operation. The hospital coordinator did not schedule this in time and she will not have enough time to donate the 3 pints that she needs.

I also got a very nice call from my friend Patricia (who I went to St. Kilian's elementary school with). She had surgery recently and filled me in on things to expect and some tips that will be helpful to me during recovery.

Tomorrow looks like another good day for biking. So happy to have warm weather again.

T-14: Got the letter from my Transplant coordinator

Mar 29: 9:00am - Show up at the hospital. They will do a final pre-transplant check-up and final cross-match. Every time I hear that, I think of, "Flight attendants prepare doors and cross-check."

Mar 29: 11:00am - Meeting with the doctor -- not sure if this is the surgeon or pre-transplant check-up.

April 1: 5:30am - Admission for surgery. I hope this is an indication that my surgery will be early -- like the first one -- I am a morning person (I hope the surgeon is too!)

Two weeks from today, the transplant will be done and we will be working on recovery!

T - 15

17 March 2009 Happy St Patrick's Day. No new news from Kate or my (we each have our own) transplant team.

Two of my daughters (Theresa and Patricia) have offered to drive to NY and take us home after the surgery, actually it is about a week after the surgery as I have to stay for a follow up visit before returning to VA.

I was a little concerned that this would be a painful experience with these two, but they have promised there would be no laughing!

Looks like a beautiful day in VA, so it is back on the bike.

Kate's Health

15 March 2010: Just received a note from Kate. Her fatigue has magnified and she has been getting nauseous. Her doctor said that she has "hit the wall". Not sure if we can move things up, but it sounds like a good idea to me.

Donation Risk Information from CNN

The following article was posted by CNN:
http://tinyurl.com/KidneyDonorRisk

I have copied the article below in case it is removed by CNN.

One startling revelation in the article;
"...risk of death, the most serious surgical complication,”
This ranking would never have occurred to me, but not having gone to medical school, I will have to defer to Dr. Zand.

March 9, 2010
Study: Donating a kidney doesn’t boost risk of premature death
-AET
By Caitlin Hagan
CNN Medical Associate Producer

Live kidney donation is a safe, effective procedure that poses little risk for the premature death of the donor, reports a new study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. That’s welcome news to the more than 106,000 people on the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) transplant list who are waiting on potential donors as of this writing.

The JAMA study is the first of its kind to review the health of live kidney donors over an extended period of time. Researchers looked through more than 80,000 records of people who had donated a kidney between 1994 and 2001. They found that for every 10,000 donors, there were only 3.1 deaths within 90 days of the transplant. Being over age 50 or obese at the time of the transplant did not increase a donors risk of dying prematurely.

“Kidney donation surgery is an extraordinarily safe operation in terms of...risk of death, the most serious surgical complication,” explains Dr. Martin Zand, medical director of the Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Programs at the University of Rochester Medical Center

Zand says that recipients worrying about potential kidney donors’ health has become major point of concern during the transplant process, even though the number of live kidney transplants performed annually has nearly doubled over the past 15 years. Today nearly 6,000 live kidney transplants happen every year.

“By donating a kidney, they’re concerned their donor will put themselves at risk for everything from minor surgery to development of kidney disease to death,” says Zand. ‘These donors are family members or partners but also people that come forward from the community.”

The hope within the transplant community is that this information will ease some of the concerns expressed by both potential donors and their recipients, particularly because no other research has followed so many live kidney donors for so long.

Generally donors must complete an education process that outlines the risks associated with transplants, before they can donate a kidney. The goal is to make sure each donor is as informed as possible about the surgery they’ve elected to have.


‘There’s an enormous value to this, in terms of public health, in terms of medical practice, - says Zand.

Editor’s Note: Medical news is a popular but sensitive subject rooted in science. We receive many comments on this blog each day, not all are posted. Our hope is That much will be learned from the sharing of useful information and personal experiences based on the medical and health topics of The blog. We encourage you to focus your comments on Those medical and health topics and we appreciate your input. Thank you for your participation.

Posted by: Caitlin Hagan - CNN Medical Associate Producer
Filed under Health

23 Days to Go

Not too much is happening at this point. Got some loose fitting drawstring pants on the advice of my new donor friends, Jill and Emily. Expect to get a letter with more details from the donor coordinator at Presbyterian, but not sure how soon that will happen.

Stepping up my weight lifting and aerobic workouts, and biking whenever the weather is good (got in 42 miles so far this week).

We have a Transplant Date

The date is: 1 April 2010 (It is April's Fools Day -- but this is for real!)

Medically cleared to move forward!

1 March 2010: Received the following message from my transplant coordinator:

"I received the electrocardiogram report and all is within normal limits.

You are medically cleared to move forward. Your sister's coordinator is working on a date with her and as soon as I have information I will be in touch."