I had dialysis yesterday and all went well. It really drains me for the rest of the day and I am unable to do much of anything but rest. My weight loss stands at 30 pounds and my appetite is nonexistent. I cannot think of anything that I want to eat but Arthur is so good about trying to find foods that might appeal to me. He encourages me while I am eating by saying eat at least 3 more bites, now you have to eat something, you are doing a great job or you can stop, if you do not want anymore, (reminds me of working with a child). He is so patient and such a wonderful caregiver. He is back at work and they are certainly glad to have him back in his office.

I talked to the nurse at the dialysis center about having my permanent/temporary catheter replaced with an Arteriovenous Fistula (AVF). This is located in the area of the arm, above the wrist and below the elbow. My arm may be too small and if so, I will receive an Arteriovenous Graft (AVG), located in the same area as the AVF. The nurse (Pat) is starting the process of setting this up. When the Fistula or Graft is inserted, it will take 4 to 6 weeks for it to heal in before it can be used. They will continue to use the catheter I have and will remove it when the new one I ready to be used.

We went to my nephrologist in Dallas, Dr. Andrew Fenves, today and brought him up-to-date on our time in Houston. He kindly said he was glad it was over and I was getting better. I took him the results of the blood work from M. D. Anderson and he is encouraged by the creatinine numbers and feels there may be a chance that I can go off dialysis in the future. No promises from anyone about this possibility but we feel there is a chance. It would be a wonderful thing if this could happen.

Thanks to A.G. for assisting me with this blog. He has been great in taking over when I am unable to do so. Thank you for your notes, e-mails, calls, prayers and well wishes. I appreciate you all more than you can ever know. It has meant so much to my family and to me.