ALB and nutritional deficiency disease: For example, Robins and Katz (2013) reviewed and documented five key variables to determine risk of death or prognosis and considered non-dialysis pathways for ESRD patients, including nephrologist responses to the surprise question relating to the potential for dying in the next 6 to 12 months among patients who are elderly; have significant comorbidity, poor functional status (e.g., peripheral vascular disease, dementia, poor serum albumin level), or malnutrition; or who reside in a nursing home [25,26,27,28].