Lymphoma, So Fast...

[snowjay]

Here I am 4 days after my Cody was taken from me still thinking how unbelievably fast this all happened. (Click here for orignal thread) From everything I had read before and after is generally upon the first presenting sign, typically enlarged nodes, the average survival time is 4-8 weeks w/o treatment. Even with me acting fast, having the best people look after him and having friends call in favors to get emergency exams still wasn't enough and we barely made it a week. Of course hindsight is 20/20 and I've second guessed myself thinking I missed something - that his arthritis symptoms weren't really arthritis but this thing brewing inside him, but then even the first vet we saw came to the same conclusions as I did. Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't I guess we'll never know. All I know is I knew my Cody and he didn't seem sick, other than being a little stiff in the mornings (or after a long nap) since the onset of the colder weather in mid Dec - and I had an appt with our regular vet to see about treatment for that, he was still the same happy fun boy who would paw at me in the kitchen for treats, play with his toys before breakfast/dinner and snuggle up in bed with me. Maybe my thinking he was chewing his food more and not gulping any more was a precursor, but the first time he didn't finish a meal was the same day I found the enlarged mandibular lymph nodes and the vet was called within 10 minutes of that discovery. He didn't completely go off his normal food until 2 days later.

 

From the discovery of the first two nodes another pair would crop up every two days thereafter. I remember my vet saying on Thursday after finding the prescapular nodes enlarged "no way the other vet didn't find these." Then on Saturday his retropharyngeal nodes were enlarged, and on Monday his auxiliary nodes were now noticeable. Whatever it was it seemed to be moving quickly, at least to me. I had a bad feeling after finding the second pair on Thursday and an even worse feeing after the ultrasound on Saturday finding out it was all through is abdomen and had infected the spleen (it had a swiss cheese look) and liver. It was very telling when they didn't ask us to do a chest x-ray and said "go home and spoil him."

 

What is particularly surprising to me is how fast he crashed. We had a good night sleep (I had even put him on he bed with me since he hadn't been jumping up for the past few days - little didn't I know it would be for the last time) and we had a normal morning walk and I was able to get him to eat some food. Within one hour he went from walking around the house as normal to not being able to stand, or even move his back legs it seemed. I laid next to him and pet him keeping him as comfortable as possible until help could arrive so I could get him to the vet. My vet was in shock to see him in the condition that he was and I don't think she had seen something so aggressive (she saw him just 3 days earlier). He was very calm at this point and resting his head on my lap as I pet him and talked to him but you could see it in his eyes that he was done and the fight was over. I'm ok with my decision and take some comfort knowing I was there for him and not having him suffer.

 

The thinking is that the crash on Monday was either a node/tumor invading his spine or it had attacked/been attacking his CNS now rendering the hind end paralyzed. We thought stage IV after the ultrasound but maybe it was really stage V by that point and he had been hiding it well. I just can't believe it happend so so fast. It's as if he never even had a chance.

 

Anyway, I just wanted to vent, but didn't want to put this in soapbox as it could promote a meaningful discussion and possibly help someone else's hound in the future.

Edited January 11, 2013 by snowjay

[Guest june]

I am so sorry. I have tears in my eyes reading what you and he went through. Hard as it is he was so blessed that you, and you him. You were there for him at the end and that is the most important thing to remember. I have no doubt he knows how much you love him and is waiting for you at the bridge. Godspeed Cody.

Sending prayers to help heal your heart.

june

[3DogNite]

I am sorry for you loss! I went thru a very fast month from diagnosis to saying good bye with Power. He had a splenic mass.

and a month is a lot longer than what you had ~

 

Greyhounds are amazing animals - they know when to fight and the understand and know when not too.
I wish .... I wish .... well, I wish for a lot of things.

but ultimately you and I are part of the lucky ones, able to say good bye when the time was right for our much loved and missed friends!

 

[ZoomDoggy]

The first greyhound I lost, Sissy, succumbed to T-cell Lymphoma. She went from being seemingly perfectly healthy, to dead within two weeks. I have no insight. I really don't even have much hindsight. Sometimes you just don't get lucky, no matter how hard you try or wish... Sometimes the cancer just rolls through too hard and fast to do anything about it. Medicine is never a perfect science. It's guessing and trial and error. Sadly it's the same for people as it is for animals. It's heartbreaking and enraging.

[Guest twogreytkids]

Lymphoma is very fast moving. Please don't beat yourself up.

 

I adopted an 11 year old return. He was a happy boy, but had a little weakness in his hind legs. I took him for a vet check. The vet said that he looked greyt and he seemed to have a touch of arthritis.

 

Ten weeks later, all of his lymph nodes seemed to swell up over night. The vet confirmed that it was lymphoma. Two weeks later, he was gone.

 

The only thing that consoled me is that, for twelve weeks, I gave him the time of his life, and the love that he gave me in return was priceless.

[Yamaha_gurl]

Thank you for sharing with us...having a "hug and hold my hound close to me" moments.

[Batmom]

{{{{{{{{{{snowjay}}}}}}}}}}

 

 

Lymphomas and leukemias can dawdle along or can show their first sign and kill in a matter of days. As you and your best boy experienced .

[TheFullHouse]

We lost a dog to lymphoma and he went just as quickly. He left us both sitting here in shock because he seemed so well until the day he crashed. We beat ourselves up for weeks wondering what we had missed, how could we not have known that something so awful was growing in his body but in hind sight, we just didn't see it.

 

Just know you did the absolute best you could have for Cody.

[Echobelly1]

So sorry for your loss. It's very hard to accept when it happens so quickly. We lost our 8 year old Ali 1 1/2 years ago to lymphoma. It showed up as red bumps, like bug bites all over his chest and abdomen. A neighbor said it looked like a grass allergy and the vet would give him antihistamines. When the vet saw it, he shook his head and said it looked like skin cancer and did a biopsy. Ali was showing no other symptoms, was eating regularly, going for his walks, happy. While waiting for the results of the biopsy, he crashed. All of a sudden, just couldn't get out of bed. I had the vet call the lab to rush the test. I could tell he was suffering but couldn't put him to sleep without a diagnosis. They called an hour later and said they were shocked it was lymphoma. I brought him in that afternoon to put him to rest. From the first sign of a rash, he didn't last a week. Luckily he only suffered for a day. We quickly got another greet, and another one shortly after that, and marvel at how similar yet different they all are. We've had 5 over 20 years.

[MP_the4pack]

I'm really so sorry Jay. It sucks.

 

I lost my Crystal earlier this year within a week of finding cancer. It wasn't lymphoma but just as aggressive.

[snowjay]

The first greyhound I lost, Sissy, succumbed to T-cell Lymphoma. She went from being seemingly perfectly healthy, to dead within two weeks. I have no insight. I really don't even have much hindsight. Sometimes you just don't get lucky, no matter how hard you try or wish... Sometimes the cancer just rolls through too hard and fast to do anything about it. Medicine is never a perfect science. It's guessing and trial and error. Sadly it's the same for people as it is for animals. It's heartbreaking and enraging.

 

 

Lymphoma is very fast moving. Please don't beat yourself up.

 

I adopted an 11 year old return. He was a happy boy, but had a little weakness in his hind legs. I took him for a vet check. The vet said that he looked greyt and he seemed to have a touch of arthritis.

 

Ten weeks later, all of his lymph nodes seemed to swell up over night. The vet confirmed that it was lymphoma. Two weeks later, he was gone.

 

The only thing that consoled me is that, for twelve weeks, I gave him the time of his life, and the love that he gave me in return was priceless.

 

 

{{{{{{{{{{snowjay}}}}}}}}}}

 

 

Lymphomas and leukemias can dawdle along or can show their first sign and kill in a matter of days. As you and your best boy experienced .

 

 

We lost a dog to lymphoma and he went just as quickly. He left us both sitting here in shock because he seemed so well until the day he crashed. We beat ourselves up for weeks wondering what we had missed, how could we not have known that something so awful was growing in his body but in hind sight, we just didn't see it.

 

Just know you did the absolute best you could have for Cody.

 

 

Thank you all for sharing. I've even gone back to photos and videos of him just to make sure I didn't miss seeing anything early, and I know I didn't but it's hard to not wonder as I'm sure you all know.

[Houndtime]

I've had two dogs die in one day. How long did they harbor their disease? Just breaks my heart as I know what you are going through. G-d bless.

[rascalsmom]

Jay, it sounds so much like what happened to my Buddy. He started with back end weakness, and we treated for LS, but he kept losing weight, didn't want to eat....at a vet visit she found enlarged lymph nodes on his neck, did the fine needle aspirate, and in a few days we knew it was lymphoma. Start to finish, about eight or nine weeks. Buddy was 12.

 

I'm so sorry for your loss.

[MerlinsMum]

I'm in tears after reading this. That is so horrifyingly fast. I am just heartbroken for you. So, so sorry.

 

:grouphug :grouphug

 

Rest in peace, Cody...

[Guest 2dogs4cats]

Jay, I am so sorry. Sometimes they just go fast. It means that God has called them and he needs them to come home.

I know it's hard and it's natural to look back for answers, but you were there for Cody and that's what matters. I hope peace comes quickly.

[beledi]

Tears as I write this. Sorry this happened. Words can not convey how sad this makes me feel. Hugs

[dante2zoe]

I understand your loss and confusion since it didn't happen the way it is *supposed* to happen. Not lymphoma, but osteo. Dante appeared fine - no limping, no swelling, no favoring a leg. Jumping in and out of the car. Lymph nodes enlarged a little, but he had Lyme Disease before, so I made an appointment for a couple days later. Date of appointment I come home from work to find him in the backyard with a broken leg. It is amazing what you can do when fear kicks in! Got him to the vet and he was full of it. Gone in less than 2 hours. Gah.

 

Hugs to you. It plain sucks.

[DaisyDoodle]

I think it's the abdominal presentation. When the disease progression is occurring in the abdomen, where it isn't readily detected and is essentially asymptomatic, then finally emerges in the palpable lymph nodes, it seems like abdominal hemangiosarcoma--very quick and aggressive.

 

I'm so sorry, Jay, especially because I'm one of the lucky ones who got a long time with my girl after her diagnosis. Even if you had started treatment, I don't think it would have given you much more time. You did your best, and that's all you could do.

[a_daerr]

Can't imagine what you're going through right now... very sorry for your loss. Lymphoma is a terrible, terrible thing to deal with.

 

In May 2011, I lost my favorite cat to an undetermined type of lymphoma (she was only 4 years old). Same thing, it happened very quickly and she was gone within a matter of weeks. Her quick passing gave me a tiny, tiny bit of solace as I kept wondering about the "what ifs." Even if I tried chemo with her, the cancer was way too aggressive. It wouldn't have made a difference.

[snowjay]

I think it's the abdominal presentation. When the disease progression is occurring in the abdomen, where it isn't readily detected and is essentially asymptomatic, then finally emerges in the palpable lymph nodes, it seems like abdominal hemangiosarcoma--very quick and aggressive.

 

I'm so sorry, Jay, especially because I'm one of the lucky ones who got a long time with my girl after her diagnosis. Even if you had started treatment, I don't think it would have given you much more time. You did your best, and that's all you could do.

 

 

 

I think you are right on both counts. A 12 year old with weakness in the backend in the middle of winter doesn't make you think "cancer". Especially since once he was up and moving he was fine - it seemed like typical osteo-arthritis symptoms. I never noticed any weight loss on him until around the 28th when I could start to see/feel his hip bones just slightly poking up. My thought was Pinky was getting into his food more than I knew about and upped his kibble a bit and watched her closer, but that obviously didn't matter since he gave up on kibble altogether a few days later and over that week he lost 7-8lbs.

[Guest budsmom]

I am so sorry. I have been through lymphoma with my heart kitty. It sounds to me like this was probably T-cell, which is much more agressive than B-cell. I did the whole chemo thing with my cat, and that wrecked his appetite which brought on fatty liver disease which required he be tube fed, and on and on and on. Had I known how hard the treatment would be on him, I'm not sure that I would have done it. This kind of thing is never anything besides horrible, even if you try all the treatments available. I still second guess my decisions for Rex.

 

i guess what I'm trying to say is all we can do is what we think is the best for them. Cody knows you did everything you could, so please don't feel that you didn't.

[SPDoggie]

I'm so sorry it happend so quickly, but it brought me comfort to know that you were with Cody for that special last-night's sleep and you were with him on a work day to care for him and be right there with him... you did good for him.

[inugrey]

I'm so sorry about Cody. I didn't realize it was lymphoma.

 

I hate it. That cancer has so many places it can go and affect and our dogs are so good at looking happy and healthy even if they don't feel their best. Inu had lymphoma around his colon and small intestine and never once presented with a swollen node that I could see or feel. You really can't know until they really present as sick with that sort of thing.

 

I totally agree with Aimee as well.

[tbhounds]

budsmom already touched upon it- there are different variable lymphoma B-cell vs T-cell. I'm sorry you lost your boy-try to forgive yourself--it was out of your hands from the beginning .

[macoduck]

Never second guess yourself, Jay. You moved mountains for your boy.

 

My first old greyhound came to us at 13-14. He huffed and puffed a lot but the kennel vet said he was just old. Six months later on Christmas day the lymph nodes on his jaw presented. He was gone within a week.

 

Thinking of you and Pinky today...