UCSD and Scripps clinic are in SD. Since your uncle is a veteran he may have access to the Naval Hospital or VA (one is on UCSD campus).

Your uncle's radiation oncologist may also have some suggestions.

 

You mentioned he was in the USMC for for 25 years. Has anyone contacted the VA for help. He should be eligible for some assistance.

 

don't like cedars much.... reputation much better than actual care from my experience there... lots of glamour and attitude, you know?

prostate ca and radiation treatment don't seem to be reason enough to be causing ascitis, especially since you state that the liver functions at 40% and improving, so portal hypertension as cause of ascities doesn't seem likely. as mentioned already, it could be sign of malignant ascitis from intra abdominal spread, though i dthought prostate ca;s usually spread to bones and local invasion..

symptomatic treatment if uncomfortable via a tap though reaccumulation is likely, and finding the cause of ascities.... though i will say that ascities due to any is a very bad sign and expected life span at that point is fairly short....

which hospital in sd? i like scripps mercy, where i did my internship....
excellent docs there...

and the liver guys in usc and ucla are fanatastic.

then again, i'm only an anesthesiologist...

 

Well he is now in the Hospital as we speak and is stable, my Aunt will repsond will all the info need soon under my user name and I must thank everyone with all of my heart.

BTW: it is a 40% Kidney fuction, not 40% Liver. And the Nurse said it would be best if we got him out of the Hell hole of Sharp Chula Vista and into a good Hospital like UCLA or something like that.

 

always been a fan of scripps but not sharp - must be the non profit thing...

best of luck to your uncle and aunt.

 

best of luck. my prayers are with you. please keep us updated.

 

Just lost my grandfather and my uncle this year to ****ing cancer!

Sad that we live in a world that they can make a pill to make your dick hard, but we cant cure cancer? >

All the best man.

 

I lost my granfather to cancer and it was the hardest lost of my life, I hate ****in cancer. Seriously what is wrong with our medical system that we havent found a cure yet.

 

I tell you later in the Off Topic forum why there is really not a cure for cancer. It will **** most everyone off.

 

My Father was in a similar situation. Almost passed on. Luckily with good care and incredible Doctors at UCLA, he made it through.

My Father received a kidney transplant (at UCLA) recently and is recovering. He's doing well, thank goodness.

Any chance you can move your Uncle to L.A.? If so UCLA's real good, so is Cedar Sinai and USC-Norris Center. There are other good ones in L.A. but the 3 above are the ones I have had personal experience with. The only downsides are:

-UCLA and USC: get a bit busy and sometimes they are under staffed so you may not get service/attention right away. But I think it's minor. The staff are very friendly and know what they are doing.

-Cedar Sinai: bLING care but on a occasion you get the attitude from the Nurse(s). It just depends. Still, overall, their care is first-rate.

If it has to be in SD, Scripps is your best bet.

Good luck and best wishes to your uncle.

 

Well things were getting better but now we might have a turn for the worst, they took about a pint of fluid out of him to be tested and he was doing much better for about a day, eating and drinking all of his food, water, and juice. The next day Monday he had a full torso MRI, they found some stuff on the pancreas and it might be cancer, I will know more in a couple of days. But once again the so called doctors at Sharp cease to amaze me again and think that the fluid is from cirrhosis of the liver but the man hasn't had a drink in 8 years, and we all know that the liver can heal itself in a couple of years of drinking healthy. I am sure now that I will be driving my uncle up to UCLA to get treatment, and how much I dislike people filing law suits against hospitals it just might be the case. I'll just remind you that this has been going on sense February of this year.


And thanks everyone for the info, the doctors don't take kindly on being told what to do, and now if they were real doctors like you guys and just followed procedure, Sharp, my uncle, and myself would not be in the predicament we are in now. Again Thanks.

 

Just so you know, drinking is not the only cause of cirrhosis of the liver and that the regenerative abilities of the liver are limited. Once scarring has occurred, it is usually permanent. It is very seldom that a few days/weeks etc of medical care can cure years of abuse. Before you plan on suing anyone I suggest you relax and look at the situation from an objective standpoint rather than an emotional one.

You're right, by the way, many doctors don't like being told what to do especially by someone who has very little actual medical training and knowledge. I'm sure you wouldn't want me to tell you how to do your job when I know little about it. That being said, people make mistakes, and doctors are people as well. Acting on emotion, being combative and adversarial with the doctors is often counter productive. Try to set up a "family meeting" with the doctors involved to express your and your family's concerns and then listen to what they have to say. In dealing with the gravely ill I have found that many family's need to find someone to blame for what is going on and the doctor/hospital are convenient targets. I don't know the circumstances of your situation and you may be justified in what you are saying but do your best not to be rash and combative. Despite some possible mistakes, the doctors and hospital are trying to help. I hope all does work out for the best though.

 

David, I'm really sorry to hear about your uncle. With the help of you and your family, and many prayers, I hope your uncle can overcome the pain he's going through.

My uncle was diagnosed with colon cancer earlier this year.

Everything is good now, though. He beat it

It really helps to give support. I saw it on my uncle's face every single day we visited him in the hospital how much it meant for him to see us.

 

But the doctors have even said that he doesn't have cirrhosis of the liver. They still want us to believe that the fluid in his stomach is from the cirrhosis, even though it is not.

 

David,

I feel some of your pain. A few years ago my wife, son, and I moved back East to assist my mother-in-law through a tough battle with a rare form of cancer.

We found the only way to assure her care was to completely take the lead. We found the best oncologists in the area and worked her into their practice. We monitored her health care 24x7 whenever she was placed into a hospital. We consulted daily with her oncologists and they welcomed our involvement. I believe this is truly a sign of a great physician. The key word is proactive, not reactive. Everyone made mistakes, but we worked together to find solutions. We worked in a team environment.

My suggestion: take the initiative. Do some research quickly into local practices that specialize in the care your uncle requires. Plead to get him into their practice ASAP. Time is truly of the essence here...

A recommedation: I know it is a good distance away, but when we learned of my MIL's illness we immediately contacted a team of oncologists at Stanford (supposedly the best in the world for her form of cancer) and they welcomed us with open arms. While she was in the Bay Area with us they accepted her into their program and were spot-on with their diagnosis and prognosis. She decided she wanted to return to home in DC so we made the move. Long, long story.


I don't know if any of this helps, but you are not alone. Trust me, I understand how helpless one can feel in this situation. By reaching out to this board you've made a great first atttempt at finding a solution. Please keep us posted as to his progress.

pm me if you need to talk sometime