Ranger

[Guest Figmama]

Thanks so much for your reply!! You are stating about exactly what I have been thinking. No, we cannot afford expensive treatments, that is just out of the question. I didn't really understand the use of the Pred but you helped explain that a little. I'm a bit upset that my own Vets didn't mention trying that or the other drugs. He really does not recommend the Chemo due to Ranger's age, side effects, cost and quality of life issues.

 

Yes, as far as we can *see*, there is the one swollen node on the right side of his neck that I found last week. Vet checked him over and didn't feel any others but told me what to watch for. One Vet said there may be some internally or there will be.

 

I have a friend who is a Vet in another State and she recently wrote. This is part of what she said.

 

Lymphoma is tough. As you have found out the life span even with chemo is around a year, without anything it's a few weeks. I have had some success with oral lomustine/pred or leukeran/pred. Both of which are reasonable on cost versus the thousands of dollars for the traditional chemo protocols. If it were one of my dogs, realize that I don't have to pay for me doing the work but I would likely do the regular chemo because I can be guided by the local internist and do the meds myself. Over the years I have had 2 or 3 dogs go through the full chemo series which bought them about a year. I have used pred alone on a few and it buys a couple of months.

 

I can't do much until Monday and, hopefully, I can get some answers from UC Davis or Dr. Couto.

 

Again, thanks so much. Such hard decisions. I've had many animals over the years and have certainly lost my share but have never dealt with cancer. I had no idea lymphoma could take them so quickly. As Ranger had all those tests done within the past couple of months, I can't understand where this came from so quickly and nothing showed up on those tests other then the protein loss in the urine, which my Vet attributed Ranger's weight loss to.

[4My2Greys]

Figmama I know your weekend was busy with family reunion what I meant when I said don't waste time is don't wait for a vet to hand you the information regarding alternative treatments or other methods of cancer treatment aside from the standards of chemo or radiation. I speak this from experience in helpings a friend research alternative treatments for her greyhound that is battling brain cancer. Her greyhound has had 2 MRIs and been seen by several specialists. The oncologist studied under Dr. Couto, who was also contacted. The only thing she was ever told re treatment was that radiation was the only option for this particular tumor because it was on the brain stem. Your going to find for the most part that you will have to do the research yourself in looking for other options and treatment protocols if you don't go with the standards of care in cancer treatment. I would strongly recommend joining the Yahoo group Artemisinin_and_cancer. Not saying you have to use this method of treatment, but there is a lot of great information on the site regarding this treatment. There is also contact information for Dr. Singh who along with Dr. Lai studied and developed this treatment regimen for cancer. Artemisinin products can be given with Prednisone however they need to be spaced apart.

Edited May 22, 2011 by 4My2Greys

[Brooker914]

You might have already figured this out, but I saw in an earlier post that you were having trouble contacting Dr. Couto. Go to https://greyhound.osu.edu/consultationservice/ then on the left side of the page click on Greyhound Consultation Form. Just fill that out and send--there is no fee for this service. Hope this helps, and good luck with everything.

[Guest Figmama]

Figmama I know your weekend was busy with family reunion what I meant when I said don't waste time is don't wait for a vet to hand you the information regarding alternative treatments or other methods of cancer treatment aside from the standards of chemo or radiation. I speak this from experience in helpings a friend research alternative treatments for her greyhound that is battling brain cancer. Her greyhound has had 2 MRIs and been seen by several specialists. The oncologist studied under Dr. Couto, who was also contacted. The only thing she was ever told re treatment was that radiation was the only option for this particular tumor because it was on the brain stem. Your going to find for the most part that you will have to do the research yourself in looking for other options and treatment protocols if you don't go with the standards of care in cancer treatment. I would strongly recommend joining the Yahoo group Artemisinin_and_cancer. Not saying you have to use this method of treatment, but there is a lot of great information on the site regarding this treatment. There is also contact information for Dr. Singh who along with Dr. Lai studied and developed this treatment regimen for cancer. Artemisinin products can be given with Prednisone however they need to be spaced apart.

 

 

Thanks. I did join the group the other day but haven't had a chance to look through it yet.

 

You might have already figured this out, but I saw in an earlier post that you were having trouble contacting Dr. Couto. Go to https://greyhound.osu.edu/consultationservice/ then on the left side of the page click on Greyhound Consultation Form. Just fill that out and send--there is no fee for this service. Hope this helps, and good luck with everything.

 

 

I'll try that link today. Not sure if it is the one I tried before but it goes to the page where you have to pay a membership fee of $61.00 or something. thanks

[Batmom]

How is your boy doing today?

 

Wish I had some sage words to offer but don't . Sending gentle scritchies instead.

[Guest Figmama]

How is your boy doing today?

 

Wish I had some sage words to offer but don't . Sending gentle scritchies instead.

 

 

thank you, Batmom. Appreciate all the prayers and advice from everyone.

Actually, he seems to be doing fine, well, as fine as he has been doing for the past couple of months dealing with the protein problems. At least his trachea does not seem to be obstructed and he will eat if I stand there and keep stiring his food (he has me trained lately, playing on my sympathy) and he still enjoys his two daily walks so thankful for that. I keep gong over him but still, externally, only feel the one large node in his neck. He does have that occasional dry hack that I mentioned to my Vet weeks ago but chest x-ray didn't show anything but makes me wonder if there is thorax involvement. So, today he seems good so it is a good day.

 

I have a friend who is a Vet in another state and she sent me a bunch of information. Of course, like she explained to me, she might try the Chemo but she can do it herself and it can get to be very expensive. She said she has treated cases with Pred and Leukeran (?), I think she said, that gave the dogs an extra 2 or 3 mos.

 

I've been busy and trying to catch up reading all the info so many have been nice enough to send.

 

The other issues too are my own health problems coupled with my mother's and now the dog. It is getting to be overwhelming, even on a good day but it could be worse.

[4My2Greys]

I wanted to share with you a few websites that I thought had good information.

This one explains about the wasting away of the cancer patient's body called Cachexia. This is my friend's biggest battle with her greyhound that has the brain tumor.

 

http://www.cancertutor.com/Cancer/Hydrazine.html

 

Here are a few more on Artemisinin:

 

http://www.mwt.net/~drbrewer/canart1.htm

http://www.mwt.net/~drbrewer/canart2.htm

 

This website gives a listing of different alternative therapies that have been used. What I especially like about it does not sell products. It makes suggestions based on quality, but also warns you of fakes and frauds on the market.

 

http://www.mnwelldir.org/docs/cancer1/altthrpy.htm

 

My posting this information is not a push for you to use anything. I know this is very personal. I just wanted to put it out there in the event you are interested as it would give you some information you could use in making a decision in which direction to go.

[Guest Figmama]

You might have already figured this out, but I saw in an earlier post that you were having trouble contacting Dr. Couto. Go to https://greyhound.osu.edu/consultationservice/ then on the left side of the page click on Greyhound Consultation Form. Just fill that out and send--there is no fee for this service. Hope this helps, and good luck with everything.

 

Thanks. That is where I filled out the form before and ended up at the page asking for the $61.00. I'm considering filling it out today and paying the fee or waiting to see if I can get in touch with someone at UC Davis tomorrow. And, of course, it's Monday and I'm sure they are busy as heck on Mondays.

[DaisyDoodle]

Figmama, did you get my email this AM?

[KF_in_Georgia]

If Ranger has problems with anesthesia using one drug protocol, it should be possible to change to something else. My Sam was fine for his neuter, then for two dentals. Dental number 3, with the same drugs (including ketamine), and Sam had seizures and all kinds of trouble. (The vet's phone call began, "Sam's okay now, but...") Since then, Sam's had two dentals without ketamine, and he's been fine.

[Guest Figmama]

Figmama, did you get my email this AM?

 

I'm behind checking mail but no, I don't see it.

 

Figmama, did you get my email this AM?

 

Daisy, I was checking my regular e-mail. Just realized there were two messages on this site. Showed 2 but won't let me check them as I'm still considered a newbie!!!!!

you can e-mail me at fignewtn@att.net

[Guest Figmama]

Long story short, UC Davis and Ohio State have research programs that Ranger may or may not qualify for.

 

I called the Vet that did Ranger's ultrasound a few months ago and, luckily, they got me in to see the Vet today. This is an aggressive disease and time is of the essence. In doing my research and talking to my Vet friend in OR, there are some other options and I am not happy my own Vets didn't even mention them. One is giving Prednisone alone or in combination with another drug which may give him another 2-4 mos.

 

This Vet I saw today, does some oncology at his office and we went over a few options. He actually went to school at Davis. He told me the study at UC Davis would at least entail going there once a week. He could work with them, they would cover some of the expense but I have to remember it is a research program. That would be hard on us and the dog so that's out.

 

He did suggest a treatment he has used which is using an IV drug over a 15 week period that would probably run us about $1,500 for the entire treatment plus maybe more for some extra blood work. We could see how he does and opt to stop it if we want to. Luckily, he has the drug so we wouldn't have to buy the entire thing whether we used it or not. He said he hasn't had many bad side effects from it other then some vomiting and diarrhea which should be able to be controlled with meds. This "may" give him an extra year. I told him I need to address the quality of life issue and if the dog is going to be miserable and sick, I would opt to not do the treatments. Again, that would have to be a wait and see issue after the treatments were started.

 

So, I just tried to discuss this with my husband, who is not on board doing any kind of Chemo (mostly due to the expense) and is leaving it up to me. :-( I do have a call into another Vet in town that I like but we have been playing phone tag. I want to see what he would recommend and what protocol he follows, estimated cost, side effects, etc.

 

I'm fighting with my head and my heart here. It's hard since Ranger still is doing okay, for now. From what I've read, that will probably change rapidly. Do I try this with a 12+ year old dog? Someone help me out here.

 

I did send an e-mail over the weekend to another Vet in town that I like and he did respond telling me they do chemo but there can be adverse side effects. Unfortunately, he called me while I was out this morning so I don't have that info yet.

 

At least I have taken UC Davis and Dr. Couto off the list. This Vet is pretty up front and we discussed Ranger's age, treatment, possible side effects, his life expectancy, in general so I feel better deciding on not going into a research study which I would consider more if Ranger were younger.

 

Thanks to all for the input and information. It has helped me a lot.

[Guest Figmama]

Well, more bad news today. Our 12 year old Grey, Ranger, was diagnosed with lymphoma. I noticed a lump in his neck the other day and called my Vet right away. He has not been thrifty, went through all the blood work, x-rays and an abdominal ultrasound a couple of months ago. We did find out he has proteinuria and have been treating him for that. My Vet did blood work yesterday and an aspiration biopsy on the lump. Got the results today and his blood work was pretty normal but the biopsy showed High Grade Cell Type Lymphoma. I've had numerous animals over the years and dealt with a number of issues but never Lymphoma. The lab statics showed, without treatment, a survival time of 30-50 days. I had spoken to my Vet yesterday about the worst case scenario *just in case*. He said the lab would probably recommend a tissue biopsy, staging, chemo, etc. Aside from the expense, he said his life expectancy would probably not improve by much and the dogs are often sick through these treatments and then to him and me, it gets to be a quality of life issue.

However, being *me*, I am doing some research and seeing who has had experience with this on the Grey boards. I'm thankful for the information that has been shared. I read something about T-cell and B-cell mentioned but didn't have that information so have a call into my Vet to see if they can give me that information. I did discuss with them what to expect and how the disease would/might progress.

Does anyone know if Dr. Couto does consults/research on lymphomas? Has anyone contacted him about this and, if so, was there a treatment plan anyone tried and what were your experiences.

My Vet knows I am beating myself up because I do try to keep a close eye on my animals. I had been keeping a close eye on him due to the proteinuria issues with his meds, diet, etc. He had lost weight in a relatively short amount of time.

At this point, he is still active (well, for him, he has never been a very active dog), eats most of the time and enjoys his twice a day walks.

Any suggestions and any stories of experiences with the progression of this disease would be greatly appreciated.

All I have to say is Damn It!!!!!!!!!!!!

thanks

 

Updates Post 62

[DaisyDoodle]

Now I'M having email issues, so I'll try to post here. I composed a reply on Sunday, and managed to write and erase a long post THREE times trying to erase one letter near the end. I was so frustrated that I ended up emailing you my cell #, but since you didn't get that, let me try again here.

 

As I mentioned in my first post in this thread, CoCo (Cosmo) lived 28 months after I first found her nodes to be enlarged from lymphoma. She was treated for a year with a Modified Wisconsin Protocol, then CCNU was used as a salvage protocol. She also had degenerative myelopathy. She was 14.5 when we helped her to the Bridge, and was most likely cancer free.

 

I'm glad you've gotten to another vet--I don't think your GP vet has a good sense of treatment for lymphoma. There are a number of treatment alternatives available that won't make your pup really sick, or at least not for long. As long as the treating vet isn't too aggressive, the side effects should be transient. Vomiting, and lack of appetite are what I recall. Vets tend to work to "control" lymphoma rather than "cure" it, so it may come back and then you need to knock it down again. This is the trade-off to maintaining quality of life.

 

I think your friend hit on a good possibility with the lomustine (CCNU) and prednisone. Though it seems that several have been mentioned here and by the vet you met today.

 

Eliminating carbs from a lymphoma dog's diet is another strategy that some folks recommend. It doesn't cost a whole lot more to do. There is a special Hill's Rx diet, ND??, I think, that is especially for cancer dogs. It is VERY rich, so you have to start it slowly. If you look back several years (2004-05 mostly, some more recent) to see my posts on Circle of Grey (Cos_n_Lucks_mom there) you can see where I've written about feeding this food.

 

Please contact Dr. Couto's group, even if you have to pay, though I've been assured that you don't have to. Get them ALL of the info from your vet, including biopsy slide images or original slides if possible. Since lymphoma in a single node is not a typical presentation (unless you are an EXTREMELY observant dog-mom and caught it especially early), I would want a different vet to confirm that your dog even has lymphoma. I don't want to get your hopes up, but I don't get a good feeling from your vet, and at least one other dog here on GT was incorrectly diagnosed with lymphoma. I am very curious what someone else would say about the biopsy slides. Did you say the blood work was normal? Before making any drastic decisions, please get more input.

 

In the meantime, you can check other nodes yourself. There are several that are easily palpable if they are enlarged. There are a pair in the lower jaw, a pair in the front of the chest (about where a person's collar bone would be), one behind each "elbow" between the ribs and back of the front legs, one in each "knee" in the back of each back leg, and a pair way up in the tuck in the groin area.

 

My vet started Cosmo on a 10/14 day course (don't remember which) of antibiotics, then finally did testing. I followed up with staging at a big vet school, which charged me double for the honor of letting students practice (badly) on my poor dog. All of this is to tell you that it took weeks to even begin treatment. While there have been some really awful and quick losses due to lymphoma on this board, it is actually one of the more treatable forms of cancer, and one where a few days can often be okay (unlike osteo, where a few days can be a matter of life and death).

 

If I were you, I would at least start my dog on prednisone and go from there. It was once believed that starting a dog on pred before other chemo agents made the other chemo agents less effective, but Dr. Couto has done research on this topic, and found no difference. If you use pred, please contact me and I can tell you an important cautionary tale about long-term use of pred.

 

To sum up--PLEASE contact OSU, reduce carbs, request pred, get ND and start to feed SLOWLY, and most important--remember to breathe, because no matter what course of action you take, this journey is a roller coaster. Remember we are all here for you.

 

Huge Hugs,

Donna

[JJNg]

Since lymphoma in a single node is not a typical presentation (unless you are an EXTREMELY observant dog-mom and caught it especially early), I would want a different vet to confirm that your dog even has lymphoma.

I think this is definitely a good idea, especially if you're considering chemo. Probably less critical if you decide to go with more conservative routes. However, since the report said "High Grade Cell Type Lymphoma" I'm thinking that probably is the correct diagnosis.

 

It was once believed that starting a dog on pred before other chemo agents made the other chemo agents less effective, but Dr. Couto has done research on this topic, and found no difference.

Good to know. Do you have any references for the newer research? I did a search but wasn't able to find much. From what I can tell, oncologists are still recommending not waiting too long after starting pred before doing chemo (if elected). The newer info I found seemed to indicate that a few days, to up to 2 weeks, of pred probably won't affect chemo much, but longer courses may still lead to 'multi-drug resistance' which can decrease the effect of chemo.

[Guest Figmama]

Now I'M having email issues, so I'll try to post here. I composed a reply on Sunday, and managed to write and erase a long post THREE times trying to erase one letter near the end. I was so frustrated that I ended up emailing you my cell #, but since you didn't get that, let me try again here.

 

As I mentioned in my first post in this thread, CoCo (Cosmo) lived 28 months after I first found her nodes to be enlarged from lymphoma. She was treated for a year with a Modified Wisconsin Protocol, then CCNU was used as a salvage protocol. She also had degenerative myelopathy. She was 14.5 when we helped her to the Bridge, and was most likely cancer free.

 

I'm glad you've gotten to another vet--I don't think your GP vet has a good sense of treatment for lymphoma. There are a number of treatment alternatives available that won't make your pup really sick, or at least not for long. As long as the treating vet isn't too aggressive, the side effects should be transient. Vomiting, and lack of appetite are what I recall. Vets tend to work to "control" lymphoma rather than "cure" it, so it may come back and then you need to knock it down again. This is the trade-off to maintaining quality of life.

 

I think your friend hit on a good possibility with the lomustine (CCNU) and prednisone. Though it seems that several have been mentioned here and by the vet you met today.

 

Eliminating carbs from a lymphoma dog's diet is another strategy that some folks recommend. It doesn't cost a whole lot more to do. There is a special Hill's Rx diet, ND??, I think, that is especially for cancer dogs. It is VERY rich, so you have to start it slowly. If you look back several years (2004-05 mostly, some more recent) to see my posts on Circle of Grey (Cos_n_Lucks_mom there) you can see where I've written about feeding this food.

 

Please contact Dr. Couto's group, even if you have to pay, though I've been assured that you don't have to. Get them ALL of the info from your vet, including biopsy slide images or original slides if possible. Since lymphoma in a single node is not a typical presentation (unless you are an EXTREMELY observant dog-mom and caught it especially early), I would want a different vet to confirm that your dog even has lymphoma. I don't want to get your hopes up, but I don't get a good feeling from your vet, and at least one other dog here on GT was incorrectly diagnosed with lymphoma. I am very curious what someone else would say about the biopsy slides. Did you say the blood work was normal? Before making any drastic decisions, please get more input.

 

In the meantime, you can check other nodes yourself. There are several that are easily palpable if they are enlarged. There are a pair in the lower jaw, a pair in the front of the chest (about where a person's collar bone would be), one behind each "elbow" between the ribs and back of the front legs, one in each "knee" in the back of each back leg, and a pair way up in the tuck in the groin area.

 

My vet started Cosmo on a 10/14 day course (don't remember which) of antibiotics, then finally did testing. I followed up with staging at a big vet school, which charged me double for the honor of letting students practice (badly) on my poor dog. All of this is to tell you that it took weeks to even begin treatment. While there have been some really awful and quick losses due to lymphoma on this board, it is actually one of the more treatable forms of cancer, and one where a few days can often be okay (unlike osteo, where a few days can be a matter of life and death).

 

If I were you, I would at least start my dog on prednisone and go from there. It was once believed that starting a dog on pred before other chemo agents made the other chemo agents less effective, but Dr. Couto has done research on this topic, and found no difference. If you use pred, please contact me and I can tell you an important cautionary tale about long-term use of pred.

 

To sum up--PLEASE contact OSU, reduce carbs, request pred, get ND and start to feed SLOWLY, and most important--remember to breathe, because no matter what course of action you take, this journey is a roller coaster. Remember we are all here for you.

 

Huge Hugs,

Donna

[Guest Figmama]

Now I'M having email issues, so I'll try to post here. I composed a reply on Sunday, and managed to write and erase a long post THREE times trying to erase one letter near the end. I was so frustrated that I ended up emailing you my cell #, but since you didn't get that, let me try again here.

 

As I mentioned in my first post in this thread, CoCo (Cosmo) lived 28 months after I first found her nodes to be enlarged from lymphoma. She was treated for a year with a Modified Wisconsin Protocol, then CCNU was used as a salvage protocol. She also had degenerative myelopathy. She was 14.5 when we helped her to the Bridge, and was most likely cancer free.

 

I'm glad you've gotten to another vet--I don't think your GP vet has a good sense of treatment for lymphoma. There are a number of treatment alternatives available that won't make your pup really sick, or at least not for long. As long as the treating vet isn't too aggressive, the side effects should be transient. Vomiting, and lack of appetite are what I recall. Vets tend to work to "control" lymphoma rather than "cure" it, so it may come back and then you need to knock it down again. This is the trade-off to maintaining quality of life.

 

I think your friend hit on a good possibility with the lomustine (CCNU) and prednisone. Though it seems that several have been mentioned here and by the vet you met today.

 

Eliminating carbs from a lymphoma dog's diet is another strategy that some folks recommend. It doesn't cost a whole lot more to do. There is a special Hill's Rx diet, ND??, I think, that is especially for cancer dogs. It is VERY rich, so you have to start it slowly. If you look back several years (2004-05 mostly, some more recent) to see my posts on Circle of Grey (Cos_n_Lucks_mom there) you can see where I've written about feeding this food.

 

Please contact Dr. Couto's group, even if you have to pay, though I've been assured that you don't have to. Get them ALL of the info from your vet, including biopsy slide images or original slides if possible. Since lymphoma in a single node is not a typical presentation (unless you are an EXTREMELY observant dog-mom and caught it especially early), I would want a different vet to confirm that your dog even has lymphoma. I don't want to get your hopes up, but I don't get a good feeling from your vet, and at least one other dog here on GT was incorrectly diagnosed with lymphoma. I am very curious what someone else would say about the biopsy slides. Did you say the blood work was normal? Before making any drastic decisions, please get more input.

 

In the meantime, you can check other nodes yourself. There are several that are easily palpable if they are enlarged. There are a pair in the lower jaw, a pair in the front of the chest (about where a person's collar bone would be), one behind each "elbow" between the ribs and back of the front legs, one in each "knee" in the back of each back leg, and a pair way up in the tuck in the groin area.

 

My vet started Cosmo on a 10/14 day course (don't remember which) of antibiotics, then finally did testing. I followed up with staging at a big vet school, which charged me double for the honor of letting students practice (badly) on my poor dog. All of this is to tell you that it took weeks to even begin treatment. While there have been some really awful and quick losses due to lymphoma on this board, it is actually one of the more treatable forms of cancer, and one where a few days can often be okay (unlike osteo, where a few days can be a matter of life and death).

 

If I were you, I would at least start my dog on prednisone and go from there. It was once believed that starting a dog on pred before other chemo agents made the other chemo agents less effective, but Dr. Couto has done research on this topic, and found no difference. If you use pred, please contact me and I can tell you an important cautionary tale about long-term use of pred.

 

To sum up--PLEASE contact OSU, reduce carbs, request pred, get ND and start to feed SLOWLY, and most important--remember to breathe, because no matter what course of action you take, this journey is a roller coaster. Remember we are all here for you.

 

Huge Hugs,

Donna

[/quote

 

Hi Donna,

It's late and I'm exhausted so won't be answering all of this now but want to thank you for all the information. Did you see my update from today above? This was another Vet I consulted who recommended the Artemisinen (?) treatment over a 15 week period. He did go over Ranger and didnt' tell me he felt any other nodes and, since he has not been well for a while, I do try to keep a close eye on him.

 

I dismissed the UC Davis study and probably Dr. Couto. Actually, the other Vet I called did call me at home this evening and he uses something similar to what you are talking about and I think the modified Madison Protocol that I did read something about over the weekend. He has had some success with that, some better then others. We did discuss Ranger's age, his overall health issues, etc. He gave about the same statistics as the Vet I saw this morning but I think this treatment would be more expensive. Of course, they are ball-parking me figures with *no complications*. I don't like giving Pred and there is always the risk of infection, septicemia, etc.

 

Without going into it here, unfortunately, there are other issues in my life I need to consider and if I can or will be able to keep on top of Ranger's treatments, etc.

 

Well, between my computer problems and a new e-mail program, I'm having problems too.

can you e-mail me at fignewtn@att.net?

I'm off to bed.

Sharon

[tbhounds]

I still think you can't hang your hat on a diagnosis from one single aspirate from one node. Your wasting time searching around for some study to enroll your dog into without a true diagnosis. You need a biopsy performed.

Didn't the vet you saw today even bring that up?

Edited May 24, 2011 by tbhounds

[NancyB]

Sending prayers for Ranger

[Guest Figmama]

I still think you can't hang your hat on a diagnosis from one single aspirate from one node. Your wasting time searching around for some study to enroll your dog into without a true diagnosis. You need a biopsy performed.

Didn't the vet you saw today even bring that up?

 

No, he did not nor did the other Vet that I spoke to last night. Ranger has also has this dry hack for some time. Due to his age, my own health issues (which my DH reminded me of and more tests due for me in the future) and add to that I have to care for my 89-year old mother and take care of her house, this all just may be to much for me. Some days, I can hardly function myself and if he gets sicker or has bad side effects, I don't know that I could handle it. Truthfully, and due to his age, I may opt for just doing the Prednisone treatment.

[Guest Figmama]

After gathering information, talking to my Vet friend and my own Vets, I think I am going to go with the predisone and leukeran treatment. The Leukeran is expensive but not like Chemo would be. I just do not want to put him through that, esp due to his age. If he has bad side effects (vomiting, diarrhea) not sure I can handle that. Part of the problem being there is really no place in the house to contain him should that happen. Well, there is but he is used to having pretty much free roam of the house and gets nervous and upset if he is closed off any part of it, esp if he is alone. MY husband feels we are not going to be able to go out anywhere and leave the dog alone.

Like I mentioned, my own health isn't the best but I finally decided that we will try this and if Ranger or I aren't doing well or he can't tolerate it, we'll stop and go from there.

 

I'm praying this won't be the worst case scenario and we can manage this.

 

Thanks all for the help and support.

[robinw]

I'm sorry you and Ranger are going through this...

[greyhead]

Love and hugs to you and Ranger. There's a lot on your plate, but you have a lot of strength.

[Guest twilliams]

Good luck to you and Ranger. I think the cheapest place I found Leukeran was at Costco. Our vet call in a script for it.

Edited May 27, 2011 by twilliams

[Guest Figmama]

Boy, I'm still struggling with this today. Got up this morning and I'm not having a good day.

I did check WalMart Pharmacy and they don't compound to the dose he would need, Vets said 5.28 mg, but I could get 2 mg and then do a 5 mg dose. It runs about $3.86 a pill as opposed to $4.50 a pill compounded.

 

tbhounds. Actually, now 5 different vets do not question the diagnosis of lymphoma from the aspiration which came back as high grade cell type lymphoma. I have to trust them on this one.