From Perf's mom:
After much growling and hissing and very loud noises, Perfy had his ultrasound yesterday. But the news wasn't what I was hoping for. The ultrasound indicates he has GI Lymphoma. Now, this isn't a confirmed diagnosis. But all indications point to Lymphoma. I hate Cancer!
He was given a prescription of Prednisone yesterday, which he started last night. His bowel movements the past couple of days have been very loose-not all liquid, but a mixture of some form and liquid. He is still on his B12 injections, which I thought had been helping his poop. But maybe it was just me hoping it was IBD.
Where do we go from here???
Well, in order to even consider visiting an oncologist and starting chemo, he would have to have a confirmed diagnosis which would mean a biopsy of his lymph nodes and intestines or they could try to extract from the lymph nodes-but that might not work.
He is not good at the vet at all. Sometimes you have furbabies that dont make a sound and are as docile as ever when visiting the vet, Perfy isn't like that at all. He hisses and growls from the moment he goes in and has to be muzzled in order to do any tests. Is it fair to him to put him thru all the stress of surgery and then if they get a biospy without finding cancer riddling his body (this happened to the last cat that had lymphoma) and they wake him up-would he tolerate visiting the vet for chemo, and the chemo itself. None of these can be done at home, where he's a baby!
I called my vet today to ask all these questions and to also ask about any Chinese Herbal medicines that she thought we could try! I am all for Chinese Medicine. I also told her about a medicine that I had found in my all day search on the internet, Neoplasene. She's going to get back to me tomorrow.
To say I'm at a loss would be an understatement. I was in tears all last night and had a few glasses of wine. I knew that he would be the hard one if he needed any medical treatments. But now that the need is here, I want to do anything I can for him-but is it fair to put him thru such stressful events?
Right now I feel like the worlds worst cat mommy! I want him to live so much longer, but Lymphoma is horrible! Am I doing everything I can? Should I put him thru stressful events? I'm hoping I can try a Chinese medicine! That I can do at home and I would then feel like I'm not completely giving up!
I just had to write all this down...it helps clear my head.....
Thank you for listening.....
Penny, mom to Kodak, 3 Perf, Blossom and Skye
30 comments:
oh no. All we can say is that you need to see what the vet says about the Chinese tx's. And listen to Perf.
In the end, he'll let you know.
Please know that our thoughts and prayers are with you and Perf.
We are so very sorry. Cancer sux.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxox
Parker and her Mommy.
We hate cancer, too.
And we are purring fur Perf.
I's not sure what to tell you, I agree wif Parker that Perf will let you know what to do.
And it is posted on the CB tomorrow, so you will get lots of help. And purrs.
Love,
KC
Cancer stinks. We don't really have any advice but we wanted to say we'll purr and pray for Perf and for you.
Sniffie and the Florida Furkids
Oh no! We're sorry to hear about the icky cancer. It needs to leave our friends alone and go away.
One of our friends that went to the Bridge, Storm, had lymphoma and her Meowmie blogged a lot about her battle with it and the choices she made. You can find the blog here: http://thefurryfighter.blogspot.com/. We thought it might give you more information.
Sending purrs to Perf to feel okay for as long as possible and for Mom - you'll do the best thing possible, we know it.
Charlemagne and Tamar
Hugs to Perf and Mom.
I will pray for Perf, Mom that somehow, you'll find clarity in all the confusion.
this is my first visit to your blog. i am so sorry to hear about perf's diagnosis. reading your post has brought a deluge of emotions and memories back to me. i lost my beautiful calico girl kimiko this past fall after being diagnosed with intestinal lymphoma. the oncologist we took her to prescribed her chemo in pill form and this allowed me to treat her at home. if you would like any other info that i have please contact me: momsbusy AT earthlink DOT net. please put in the subject line intestinal cancer so i will know it is not junk mail. i will add you to my prayer list and have my kitties send special comforting purrs your way.
momsbusy
Oh, no! We hate that you are going through this. It is hard to make decisions when the emotions are involved. But we know you will do what is best for Perf. Warm purrs and tail wags.
We are purring for Perf and you.
We really hate, hate, hate cancer! Mom sez, first, do.not.panic. Yoo really hafn't gotten da diagnosis offishully if dat is what it is den yoo deal wif it one step at a time, with profeshunal help. Punkin's oncology vet let her regular vet do da chemo fur her. after da first few visits she became much more calm, besides, she gots spoiled lots while she was der. All yoo can do is yoor best for Perf.
I am so sorry to hear that. ::hugs::
purrs and prayers being sent...
Snuggles,
Taz, Runt, Charles and mommy, Anna, in Illinois
We are so sorry to hear your news. The only advice we can give you is to get all the information you can, the listen to your heart as you make an informed choice. It will be hard but we know the love you have for Perf will mean you do the very best for him ~ of that we are sure.
Purrs.
Poor Perf and poor you too. Put all thoughts about not being a good cat mom out of your head, you are a great cat mom!
You know Perf better than anyone and you will make the right decision for him, we know it.
Try & get all the information you can and take some time to mull it over/talk with the vet etc. You could ask your vet to try and control Perf's symptoms whilst you decide what to do too.
We send love and rumbly purrs to you all and we are so sorry you are having to go through this
Whicky Wuudler
Perfy, we are sorry to hear about your troubles buddy. We hope that you can get some treatment to help you feel better.
We agree with Miss Parker, I am sure you will let your mom know when it hurts too much.
We are sending you gentle hugs and kitten kisses.
Julie and Poppy Q
xxxxxxxxxx
Oh Perf, I'm so sorry, buddy. You have a great mom who will do what is best for you. {{{hugs}}}
We are so sorry to hear about Perf. We don't have any good advice for you. But we are purring for Perf and for you and we know you'll do whatever is best for Perf. We're with Parker...cancer sux....
Wally, Ernie & Zoey (and mom Sue)
You'll know what to do after you give yourself time to think about it. You know Perf better than anyone, so you'll know what will be best. Just give yourself a few days to decide. We'll be sending good thoughts your way.
love ya,
Bruce & Sharon:)
So very sorry to hear this news. We hate cancer too! We went through this same thing with Cal last year. At first they thought it was IBD and he did well on the prednisolone for a while. Then it was highly suspicious for GI lymphoma. We never did the biopsy because Cal hated the vet and we thought the whole process of putting him under would set him back and there was no cure if it was. An x-ray did show a probably mass and that's really all I needed. I felt in my heart it was indeed lymphoma. We continued on with the pred and a few other meds. In the end he let me know it was time.
I think its great to explore alternative medicines, so hopefully your vet will give you some advice on those.
You know Perf best and whatever decision you make for him, just know it will be the right one. You are in our thoughts and prayers during this very difficult time. (((hugs)))
So sorry you're being faced with this. Hang in there. One day at a time.
No.1 of The Poupounette
Lymphoma is indeed awful. It takes on different forms and it does all depend on each individual.
perhaps some xanax or a very mild tranquilizer will help keep him calm enough to go through some further tests.
We will certainly be praying for all of you.
(((hugs)))
We came from CB. We're very sorry to hear about Perf. We're thinking of you and purring very hard for you guys.
Purrs, Keiko Kenji & Pricilla
You have my sympathy. I went through this with my beloved cat Thomas several years ago. I couldn't stand the idea of losing him and so chose the very expensive option of chemotherapy. The vet told me, even though they had some success with it, that it might ony buy him an extra 6 months to a year at most.
My Tommy was a very good patient, but he was still not the same during this process. It was very difficult to watch. He didn't want to eat, and I had to forcefeed him.
After the first round of chemo, he went into a very brief remission, but when it returned, I decided it wasn't fair to put my sweetheart through that again. Once I made the decision, we did it right away and he passed with me holding him in my arms.
I don't believe there are any guarantees for long term survival with lymphoma. It is sad, but if I had to do it again, I wouldn't put my cat through treatment. The quality of life just wasn't there any more, and the end was going to be the same anyway.
I'm very sorry to tell you this, but for Perf's sake, it's likely in his best interests to pass on to the Bridge, where he can be free of this horrid disease.
We are so sorry to hear this - just listen to the options and then do whatever you think in your heart is right for Perf - whether it is treatment or love and comfort.
If you are interested in a non invasive treatment for GI lymphoma I would suggest Dr Charles Loops - a omepathic vet in NC who does it all by phone. I used hime twice and both cats had GI lymph - one passed away but the other was cancer free. He died of a heart condition later. Dr. Loops has a web site - I think it is CharlesLoopsDMv.com. If I can help, let me know - he also uses vitamins, herbs etc. I did not use surgery, chemo or prednisone.
I can't tell you what to do, you have to make the best decision for Perf based on how he is, his personality. I know that my Annie can't be pilled, tends to be a crabby cat, and doesn't do well with any kind of treatments. She's hyper-thyroid now and gets ear gel twice a day (because she can't be pilled!) and she hates even that. I really don't think I would go to extreme measures to prolong her life if she got cancer, for example, because she would have no quality of life. But that's Annie and the decision I would make for my other two cats might be different.
All I can suggest is that you make the best decision you are able to, for *his* Highest Good, not your own. And that sounds exactly what you are trying to do.
Please know we're all purring for you both and sending universal healing Light.
Peace.
-Kim and the Fuzzy Tales crew
Does your vet do Chinese medicine? As an acupuncturist and Chinese herbalist, I am very careful about dosing my cats. However, to try and get results for something that is potentially cancer (more than palliative care) you really need to dose at fairly high doses and be sure it's the correct formula. At those high doses you can get symptoms so you need someone who knows what symptoms are normal for those herbs short term at a high dose and what are potentially signs that this isn't a good formula.
My cats get homeopathics from a vet who just does homeopathic medicine. It's always worth a try and I've seen amazing results with homeopathy on my cats -- much more so than herbs. The advantage of homeopathics, when the vet is good and they get the right one, you pill them a few days and that's it. Much nicer than trying to force herbs down their throats.
As an acupuncturist, I never "try" Chinese herbs. I know what I'm giving. And I know what to look. I am very conscious of exactly how powerful the medicine can be. Just because it's natural doesn't mean it can't be deadly if given wrongly.
The cats will be purring. We've had lymphoma in our house years ago. It is not a good diagnosis and our hearts break for you. I hope that it turns out to be something else and with the blogosphere purring--it can happen.
We are so very sorry to read this, and we wish we had answers for you.
We are so very tired of this cancer stuff...it is so terrible.
We will be purring for all of you.
We are very sorry about Perf's diagnosis. We hate cancer too. The vet treated Vincent through 3 1/2 years of cancer and Riley decided he did not want even a day of cancer treatment. All cats and all cancers are different. Sending you purrs.
Oh, dear, we are so very sad to learn of poor Perf's illness. We just learned of you from the CB, and this is our first visit to your blog.
We have never been through any of that at our house, so we cannot offer advice, only strong purrr-medicine and virtual hugs.
We send many healing purrs to Perf and support your efforts to treat him with alternative, non-invasive therapies. He is a lucky boy to have you looking after him.
Hang in there, Perf...
'Kaika and the Yosemite cats
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