Brian S. Petresky Posted June 9, 2003 Report Share Posted June 9, 2003 hello to all my beloved male border collie spanky has benn diagnosed with lymphatic cancer. he is 6yr and neutered. anyone out there have this happen or hear of positive treatments for this. he of course is active as usual with no outward signs of behavioral change..any conversation is helpful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kaos Posted June 9, 2003 Report Share Posted June 9, 2003 I am so very sorry to hear of his diagnosis. I have had some experience with canine lymphatic cancer, and I am sorry to say it was not very positive (I don't really want to tell you this, but I think if we know possible outcomes etc, it makes the decision process much easier to live with). Hopefully his was caught in time. My parents have Airedales, when Trixie was 3 years old (just) we noticed that her neck seemed a little swollen, so dad brought her in to the vet, diagnosis lymphatic cancer. By the time they came home she was having trouble moving and was in some pain. (If you know Airedales then you know they are extremely hardy, have very high pain thresholds and will keep going regardless of how they feel). Unfortunately she also had fairly bad hip dysplasia and the vet was advocating cancer treatments for a very extended period of time that would only buy her 6-8 more months any way...so my father refused all treatments except for pain control and withint 2 days she had to be put down. Euthanasia was truly a blessing in this case as she was in so much pain and couldn't move or be comfortable and that is a horrible thing to witness in your pet. I wish you and spanky all the best and I hope that others here have much better stories to tell, and treatments to offer. sincerely sara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Margaret M Wheeler Posted June 9, 2003 Report Share Posted June 9, 2003 So sorry to hear this Brian! What has your vet told you with regard to the best way to treat your dog's illness? I'm on the run today, but I'll look back in tonight. Sorry again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyrasmom Posted June 9, 2003 Report Share Posted June 9, 2003 I'm really sorry to hear about Spanky's diagnosis. While I haven't dealt specifically with lymphatic cancer, my dog Kyra had both mammary cancer and eventually succombed to osteosarcoma which is bone cancer. During our three year battle I spoke at length with my vet,with various specialists at UC Davis, and with a multitude of "parents" of the patients. I can't get into your head so I can only share my thoughts and decisions. When Kyra was first diagnosed with mammary cancer I opted for chemotherapy. Her quality of life, diabetes not withstanding, was still very good, she smiled and played every day, and I had no intention of losing her. Differently from humans, dogs don't have a lot of the discomfort related to chemo. There might be some mild stomach upset but nothing heart wrenching. With Kyra we had no side effects at all, even her diabetes was unaffected and her blood sugar numbers remained unchanged. I would never suggest not trying chemo if the fear of making Spanky's life miserable was the only mitigating factor. I've been in touch with so many people who didn't want to subject their pets to chemo because "it's cruel". It's not. My vet has various patients with lymphoma and says that overall, if caught early enough, there is a good chance for remission. Does this mean Spanky could be cured? No, but it does mean that you can buy some time in which he lives his life naturally. At UC Davis I met with a man who had a collie who had lymphoma and had come out of remission for the third time. Her name was Sparky and she seemed fine, elderly, but otherwise happy. From diagnosis to this third relapse 2 1/2 years had passed. The time between relapses was getting shorter so I can only assume that the end was getting nearer for Sparky, however, without the chemo, she would not have had the additional 2+ years. Our second diagnosis of cancer was three years after the mammary cancer. We're pretty sure that the osteosarcoma was a secondary metastisis from the mammary cancer. At this point Kyra was 10 years old, in extreme pain as osteosarcoma is among the most painful of cancers, and our options were few. We had a selection of amputation, chemo and radiation, or simple pain management. This is where we had to decide what was the best quality of life for our girl. Pain management was not working, we had already gone through countless morphine patches and nothing was really keeping her comfortable. We considered the chemo and radiation and the vet said, that coupled with a radical amputation, we could possibly buy a few months. The cancer was already spreading, there was visible bone degeneration, and she just didn't see any long term hope. I looked at my girl and knew that she deserved better than only two months in which she would have had to learn to walk on three legs. Had they given me more hope I would have considered it. So the next day we let her have all the goodies her diabetic diet had not allowed for the previous three years and at the end of the day we took her on a car ride. Her last. So all of this to say what? Basically that you need to consider quality of life coupled with extent of the disease. Have a good honest conversation with your vet, and if you aren't comfortable with him/her then find another. A teaching hospital is also a really good option if you have one reasonably close. I know how frightening this diagnosis is, and unfortunately, it is a death sentence...just maybe not right away. Even though losing Kyra was very hard for me, thanks to the chemo I had an additional three years with my beautiful smiling girl. Regardless of your decision, just enjoy your time with Spanky, take lots of pictures, and make the most of it. Maria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy Goosey Posted June 10, 2003 Report Share Posted June 10, 2003 I'm so sorry to hear about your pooch. I lost the best dog I ever had to lymphosarcoma in 1996. Here is a link that I hope you find helpful: http://www.altvetmed.com/Cancer.html With mine, the vet had given him two months to live, but he only got two weeks before the suffering got to be too great to justify any other decision but to help him out. I spoiled the crap out of him for that two weeks, letting him lick my ice cream bowls, sleep on the bed, and everything I had never allowed him to do before. I took him for one last trip to the beach, which he had always loved. He only had enough strength to lie in the sand and sniff the air, and wade around in the water a little bit. I was fortunate to find a vet who made house calls, who came to my home and gave the injection to my dog on my bedroom floor. The vet said "No more pain" as he pushed the plunger in, and my dog heaved one last sigh of relief and was gone. I'm crying right now typing this. I think that now, there are more treatment options available than there were then. Back then, it was a death sentence, but now, there has been some success at getting remission, according to the articles I have been reading about it. Please come back and let us know what happens. Whatever you decide, we've been there too, and we're here for you. I would love to hear some happy news!!!!! Shade, 1987-1996 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emmetteabrakai Posted June 12, 2003 Report Share Posted June 12, 2003 Brian, I too am sorry about your dogs diagnosis. Being six years old and in otherwise good health, you may have more options than if he was debilatated. I see dogs here every day at the vet school that have had chemo, radiation, and they seem to do very well. It depends on the dog. I think most of them that receive treatment tolerate the situation, because of their personalitys. Also because they bond to the cartakers even if they are somewhat nervous about being away from home. Kyrasmom is right, dogs seem to tolerat Chemo very well. And even the radiation therapy . If your dog would hate the confinment, is scared at the vets etc, that may be a different story. I had a dog with a leision on a nerve and he was given chemo . He was 10 years old and tolerated it well, He is now 15 1/2. There are many possibilitys, see if you can get in touch with an oncologist, or maybe your vet already has. Good luck and keep your chin up. It is devistating when our furry friends face life thretining situations. Andrea D. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Monkman Posted June 13, 2003 Report Share Posted June 13, 2003 Brian, My four year old briard was diagnosed with lymphoma and I was surprised to discover after looking into how common it actually is in some breeds. Unfortunately as of five years ago - when I went through this - there were no really successful treatments. I lived near on of the premier vet research schools in Canada - Univ. of Guelph - and talked with one of their cancer researchers there. I was told that aggressive chemo and radiation treatment and no more then a 15% chance of pushing the cancer into *remission*. And even then it usually came back. This is a particularly nasty and virulent form of cancer. It doesn't usually cause the dog great discomfort until his final days. But it is fairly quick. The choice I made was based on what was best for Sandy. I wanted to make sure his quality of life was maintained and that the choices I made were for him - and not for me. I raged at God for doing this for me. (Even now typing this is bringing tears to my eyes.) I wanted to be selfish and do everything I could to make sure Sandy didn't die. But my vet was really, really good. He took the time to reach me with facts. He showed me the effects the chemo and radiation would have had on Sandy. I could not put him through that. In the end I decided to have him put on a regimen of drugs that would slow the progress of the cancer. The side effect was he could not hold his bladder for more then three hours at a time. The last three weeks were hard. Our vet offered to let Sandy stay with them during the day. He was "aired" on an hourly basis. Everyone at the vet grew to adore Sandy. He was the most loveable and affectionate dog I have ever known. I was there when the vet put him down. I will never forget the sound of his last breath. Every time I think about it I hear it as if it had just happened. Damn I miss that dog. Brian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian S. Petresky Posted June 16, 2003 Author Report Share Posted June 16, 2003 A hearty thanks for those who replied. Your letters were all well received and taken with the best intent. The results of his tests came back positive for the lympho cancer the only addition was that it is more advanced than thought and that it was an aggressive style. Anyway he is doing fine as can be..still taking his bike rides and herding the canadian geese all the while as he is swimming after them. He has a little problems breathing. the put him on steroids and something else for now. all in all you would never know he has something. Lucy, thanks for that beach pic.. awesome..see you all later.. tchau Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy Goosey Posted June 16, 2003 Report Share Posted June 16, 2003 I'm glad to hear he's feeling so well. Thank you for the update. I hope you don't mind keeping us posted on his progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kyrasmom Posted June 16, 2003 Report Share Posted June 16, 2003 I'm sorry to hear that it's further along than you thought, however it's good that he's feeling so well. Quality of life is the most important thing at this point.Please keep us updated and know that we'll keep good thoughts for you. Maria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian S. Petresky Posted July 15, 2003 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2003 Hello to all. Some news on Spanky. He is as active as ever and his breathing has gotten easier. we still ride bike, swim and everloving frisbee. He is out of his prednisone and i will be calling the vet to see whats next for him. His weight is down but i think that is because he was spoiled on the burger and chicken. Thanks for all and we will keep you all posted. Have a great summer while it lasts!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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