Guest Trey Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 (edited) I was petting my 6.5 year big brindle boy Trey today and noticed a hard lump on his neck right under his cheekbone almost the size of a golf ball. I was shocked because I pet him there all the time and hadn't felt it before (he loves a good neck and ear scratch/rub), so I think it popped up very quickly (he was also at the vet a couple weeks ago because he got a big wheat/grass-type seed in his eye, and they didn't notice anything then). I ran him immediately to the vet, fearing the big C. She examined him and said it was a swollen lymph node, but that none of his other lymph nodes seemed swollen, which is good because it's generally more than one when it's cancer, but it doesn't rule it out. She ran a blood panel right there, and said that everything came back normal. She did a needle aspiration of the node and is sending it off to the lab, and we should get the results in the next few days. She asked if I wanted to go ahead and put him on antibiotics, but I decided to wait until we could see what we were dealing with. So, while I'm sitting here waiting and fretting, I was wondering if anyone else had some experience with this? It's just the one lymph node, he's been acting fine (appetite, activity level all normal), blood panel normal, but I'm terrified that it will be cancer. I'm hoping folks out that have non-cancer lymph node stories! Edited January 10, 2012 by Trey Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbhounds Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 If its just one node that's enlarged that's good news-- could be a localized infection. How's your hounds teeth?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Trey Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 If its just one node that's enlarged that's good news-- could be a localized infection. How's your hounds teeth?? I'm really, REALLY crossing my fingers that it is only something like that. His teeth are really pretty good. The vet said his teeth look great - especially for a greyhound. It's been almost three years since his last cleaning and she said that while he's got a little plaque, it wasn't enough to necessitate a cleaning and probably not the cause of the swelling. But at this point I'd be willing to take a bum tooth -- anything to rule out cancer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlgwarner Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 (edited) I don't want to alarm you but you may want to ask your vet to x-ray to rule out osteo. A needle aspiration will most likely NOT catch osteo but x-rays can be pretty difinitive. I recently lost one who had osteo growing from the vertabrae in his neck. Tonight I take his littermate to the vet to have a hard lump on his rib x-rayed. I've been doing a lot of research since I discovered Paul's lesion a few days ago, thinking ribs were an odd location. I since learned that ribs are not so uncommon and osteo can even occur in the skull and jaw. If the mass is mobile (i.e. it moves around as you push it from side to side) it's most likely a lymph node. If it doesn't move, I'd insist on an x-ray. Few vets, unless they're very experience with greyhounds go looking for osteo, assuming instead that its a more common malady. If it is osteo, as hard as that is to hear, the treatment is much different from an infection and I know you want to do what's best for Trey. Just as with my Paul, I am hoping for the best for Trey. Edited January 10, 2012 by dlgwarner Quote Mom to: Littermates Ringo (Pak Sgt Pepper)at the bridge, Paul (Pak Penny Lane) and John (Pak Let it Be). The three reunited Beatle Brothers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mirinaaronsmom Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Boy, I sure hope it's nothing. Mojo has lymphoma and when I took him to the vet for 'swollen glands' he had 6 nodes that were swollen. I had no idea that's what it was. He was coughing and having trouble swallowing and held his head funny due to the swelling. So that doesn't sound anything like what you're experiencing with Trey. Hopefully whatever it is, you've caught it early and it's treatable. We did put Mojo on antibiotics while we waiting for the results from the aspirations, but it didn't make any difference and as soon as we found out what it was, we stopped. The waiting was awful. Please let us know what the results are. I'll be praying for you both. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MP_the4pack Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 A single swollen lymph under the jaw could very well be an abscessed tooth. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest greybookends Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 I had this happen with Sheana a few years ago. All tests came back neg. We decided to run a month of antibiotics for what was most likely an infection somewhere her body was fighting. We figured it was tick borne but without expensive tests it was hard to say. A month of Antibiotics cleared it right up and we've never had another problem. If it IS something more serious you have caught it EARLY and Lymphoma if caught early enough can be treated successfully. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Trey Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 The lump is definitely his lymph node - at first the vet wasn't sure if it was a lymph or salivary gland, so she looked at the cells before sending them to the lab and said they were definitely lymph cells, so we can probably rule out osteo (thank goodness). And she said that with only one swollen node, she wasn't as worried about lymphoma than if he had more than one or in multiple areas (like glands swollen in the neck and the chest or legs), but it couldn't be ruled out on that alone. I hope we'll get the lab results today or tomorrow. Thanks for the kind words and I'll try to remember to breathe in the meantime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbhounds Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Breathe!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dlgwarner Posted January 10, 2012 Share Posted January 10, 2012 Soooo glad to here that the vet confirmed it was lymph tissue. Quote Mom to: Littermates Ringo (Pak Sgt Pepper)at the bridge, Paul (Pak Penny Lane) and John (Pak Let it Be). The three reunited Beatle Brothers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Trey Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Gah! So frustrating -- I had time in between meetings today so I decided to call Trey's vet to see if his lab results came in (I knew that they should have because I have a friend who is a vet, but lives over 100 miles away so she isn't Trey's vet, but she does have to send her labs up her to my town and she said that she can get results within 24 hours, so certainly someone in town can too). I get the vet on the phone and she tells me that while they have the results, the vet tech wrote on the report that the sample came from his shoulder, not his Submandibular lymph node right under his jaw, so she had to tell them to check it again and they hadn't posted the new results yet. So...great. Nice competence there. But I asked her what the results said because it seems that if there are cancer cells in a lymph node sample, you can see the cancer cells and the site doesn't really matter. She seemed reluctant to say anything (I don't know why, unless she doesn't like giving out anything but exact results), but did say that the pathologist thought it looked like some sort of reaction/inflammation and asked if he had received a vaccine injection at that site. Since I couldn't get a straight answer from my vet at this time, I hung up and called my vet friend and she agreed with me that yes - a pathogen is a pathogen and a cancer cell is a cancer cell, so if either one was present, the pathologist would have noted it. She said it is possible that the site would make a difference, but the chances were small. So, I am at least relieved that it sounds like it probably won't end up being cancer (yay!). But I'm still kinda ticked that we don't have a clear answer or a treatment plan yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Trey Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Okay, now I'm back to being scared/confused/frustrated. My the vet's non-answering rambling, she said something about spindle cells. So I look that up and of course they are related to cancer. But now I'm really confused. If the pathologist found spindle cells, why would he/she ask if Trey had received a vaccine injection in that spot, suggesting that it looked like inflammation/a reaction? And if the pathologist found spindle cells, then I don't know why the site would matter - it was clearly a sample from a lymph node, it doesn't seem like the site would matter in diagnosing possible cancer from the spindle cells (the site may matter later to track down the source, but not for the diagnosis). This is extremely frustrating and now I'm really mad that I have to sweat it out even longer to get an answer because they screwed up the paperwork. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tbhounds Posted January 12, 2012 Share Posted January 12, 2012 Make sure the lab saves the slide (they usually do for a time). If there are questions regarding the results send that slide and perhaps have another FNA (don't stain that one) done and send them both to Dr Couto at Ohio State University for re-evaluation. Dr Couto will gladly look at the slide and give you his interpretation of the findings. Pathology is not black and white-- always recommended to seek a second opinion in a case like this. How's the swelling today? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Trey Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 FINALLY got the final lab results for Trey, and the pathologist said that it was inflammation most likely due to something (like an infection) going on with his salivary gland. He didn't note the presence of any pathogens (which is weird since he seems to think it is an infection), but also said that there was no sign of anything cancerous, so yay! Finally, peace of mind. I had to pay around $600 to get it, but at least my heart can stop eating itself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlies_Dad Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 I'm glad it's not serious for Trey. Hopefully the meds kick-in and he is back to normal quickly. Quote Kyle with Stewie ('Super C Ledoux, Super C Sampson x Sing It Blondie) and forever missing my three angels, Jack ('Roy Jack', Greys Flambeau x Miss Cobblepot) and Charlie ('CTR Midas Touch', Leo's Midas x Hallo Argentina) and Shelby ('Shari's Hooty', Flying Viper x Shari Carusi) running free across the bridge. Gus an coinnich sinn a'rithist my boys and little girl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mirinaaronsmom Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 So glad to hear it's an infection and not the evil 'C'. $600 is nothing compared to chemo, so count your blessings. I hope it clears up quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest gomiesmom Posted January 13, 2012 Share Posted January 13, 2012 GREYT news - agree - 600.00 vs. worry - it's nothing & now it's taken care of... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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