Can we survive with one kidney? - #12510
I am kinda freaking out here because my mom's been told she needs to have one of her kidneys removed due to what the doctors say is some cyst or something that could turn into cancer. She’s always been healthy, active, you know? Now I’m stuck thinking, can we survive with one kidney? Like, how does that even work? I keep looking for info, and some places say that many people live full lives with just one, but what does that even mean for her day-to-day? I mean, she’s not super old, but 65 feels like a lot these days. Will she still be able to do her weekly hiking trips, or is she gonna be stuck on the couch for the rest of her life? I read somewhere that after the surgery, the remaining kidney kinda compensates, but how does that happen? Can we survive with one kidney if something happens to the other? I can't stop worrying... I just want to know the real deal. What kind of side effects should I expect for her? And if anyone has gone through this before, how did it go?
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