DalesDublin

Worst day of my life today. Got the biopsy report back and was not good. Was told my little Dublin only has Lymphoma and is progressive and a short time to live and I should consider chemo. I am not sure if chemo is the right thing to do. I figured if he is so sick and will mostly die then why make him sicker. The cancer is only in the lympnodes and has not spread to any other area. I understand that it is in his blood and thus through out his body. The Vet said i should only take a day at most at making my decision on what to do. Chemo or put him down. I have decided at the moment to keep him at home and try to get him to eat and hydrated. There is the problem. This all started about 4 weeks ago. He was feeling fine playing and begging for food. A female was in her cycle and was driving him crazy, thus the loss of appetite but still eating. Then he started to lose his appetite all together. I made some hamburger for him which he did eat but later vomitted. Thats when I finally got a few dollars to pay for the Vet visit. I only had enough money each week to do a test until 2 days ago when I finally had the money for ultrasound. I was told then it was cancer and all about the lymphnodes. The did the biopsy and the results...well sad to say not good at all. They gave me prednazone for appetite and a few seringes of fluid to put under his skin if needed for hydration. I pray this will work to get his strength up so I cant start the cancer fighting regments listed on this site.

Help!!!! Where do I start. I just want to help him feel better until he shows signs of pain. He is walking around but with not much energy due to him not eating for almost a week. He did have food forced yesterday and only about 1 ounce so far today without throwing up. How much should he eat? How much water or Pedialyte should I try giving him. So many questions. I love my dog and have excepted the fact I will have to let go at some point. Just wont be the same without him. He was by my side (no kidding) 24/7. He even went to the office with me. We have gone thru so many hardtimes together and he was always there by my side to make me feel good. I just want to repay him the favor. Any advice on where to start, especially getting his appetite back.

Meesh

I am so sorry you received this horrible news. My Hamlet was diagnosed at the end of January with lymphoma and it was like a mack truck hit me. His neck nodes felt a little swollen to me at the beginning of the month but his allergies were flaring so I assumed the nodes were related. When they didn't go down and he lost his appetitie, I knew something was wrong and took him to the vet. An aspirate confirmed the horrible news. Fast forward 8 months, including 6 months of chemo, and Hamlet is in full remission. During chemo, Hammy had a very high quality of life and only had a few episodes of side effects and they only lasted a couple days and were nausea, some lethargy, and some diarhhea. But our onc sent us home with anti-nausea meds and antibiotics to combat those.
Lymphoma moves VERY fast which is why your vet probably told you to make your decision quickly. The pred will definitely stimulate Dublin's appetite. In the meantime, try ANYTHING...baby food, tuna, tuna water, one favorite from another support site is liver water (liver boiled in water but just use the water), scrambled eggs, yogurt. You can check for dehydration by pulling on the scruff of Dublin's neck (like his bio mom would do to pick him up); if it doesn't fall back down immediately, he's in need of fluids. Dogs can go up to a week without food but they need to stay hydrated.
You're options are not limited to just chemo or euthanasia. There are holistic treatments available that will keep the cancer at bay and keep Dublin comfortable.
Once you get your guy eating again, switch him to a grain-free diet, use bottled or filtered water only, and get him on a good quality Omega-3.
Best of luck and keep us posted on Dublin's progress!
Michelle & Hamlet (and Rufus, too)
Dx 01/29/10 Stage Va, B-cell lymphoma with liver, spleen, and bone marrow involvement
Tx 02/01/10
Full Remission 04/26/10
Chemo Protocol Completed 06/28/10
Remission Confirmed 07/16/10, 08/16/10

Meesh

BTW, if you do want to do chemo and the money is an issue, there are places for help:
1. Google The Magic Bullet Fund
2. Try this website: Speaking for Spot :: Help Paying for Veterinary Care
or you could apply for a CareCredit card (the option I chose) which usually has a 6-month, no interest program.
Michelle

Loki

I feel your pain, we just got our bad news exactly 2 weeks ago today. I hope its ok if I post a copy of what we have done so far. Know that I will keep you in my thoughts

We just got the results (2 days ago) of a biopsy. Mid grade lymphoma. Vet says 2 weeks to 2 months. Oncologist says MAYBE another year with chemo. After we stopped crying and picked ourselves up off the floor we made some decisions, we have decided against chemo and will be giving Bruiser Prednisone (vet says it could add a few months). We are also changing his diet to exclude all grains. Last night for dinner they (I have 2 brothers from the same litter) had rare ground beef with finely shredded and steamed carrots, broccoli and red bell pepper, boy they loved that. This morning they had 1/2 cup of cottage cheese with 1tbsp flax-seed oil (smelled like varnish, but they enjoyed the taste).
We have done what research we could in the last 2 days and It looks like Bruisers chances are just as good with the new diet (still working on details) as with chemo, and if we are going to lose him I want him to be comfortable and have a steak in his belly.
day 2
adding omega 3 fish oil to his new diet. will be slowly working him up to 8000 mg per day over the next 2 weeks. he will be having rare chicken livers and steamed finely shredded vegetables for dinner. 1/2 pound fresh chicken livers, 2 lg broccoli chunks (flowerets) 1/2 large carrot, 1/4 red bell pepper and 1 1200mg omega 3 fish oil. Oh yeah he had 4 or 5 carrot sticks after diner.
(edited out daily reports)
Well you see were I'm going with this. I will keep feeding him this new diet from now on and post any results here
Day 12
Vet Visit.. Bruiser got his stitches removed, Infection is cleared up. Vet said he looks good. He is very energetic and seems happy. We roasted a whole turkey for him and he couldn't eat his dinner fast enough. I am going to switch to raw meats but have only been able to do very rare so far (i have a mental block)

DalesDublin

Thanks for your support. Some of the post from you guys I have already read but thanks the same. I'm not sure what stage he is at, cant remember or the Vet did not tell me. I'm losing my mind. I tried the baby food (beef with beef broth) it only lasted about 2 hours and he vomitted. I had a nausea shot given to him yesterday and he held down his food. Not sure how much they feed him but they seemed very pleased with the amount he was able to hold down. He did show signs of discomfort for about 4 hours and scared me to the point that this was it. I took him out for a walk (convincing) and he did go (diahrea) and urinated. He seemed to feel much better and came inside got on the bed and slept at ease. Money is an issue at the moment and I would sale everything I have to help him with the chemo but just not convinced it will do much for him. I will go see the uncologist tomorrow if I can get in to see her. Thats about $200 just for a visit. I think the Vet already spoke to the uncologist about Dublin and I was told 2 months maybe with chemo. Not sure if she did but thats what the Vet told me. So, I was shocked and not sure to see the uncologist. Carecredit has already been tried. Sorry to say they declined me. I guess my credit score is to low for them. I will look at the options you guys gave me. I want to give him every effort to battle the cancer. Atleast give it a bloody nose before it takes him.
Any other suggestions on the vomiting and getting him to hold his food down?
Will the prednazone help with this? Or do I have the vet give him another nausea shot or pills? Has he gone so far that all this is useless. He does not cry out. He shows no signs of swelling lymph nodes and does not cry out if I pick him up or push on stomach area. He just has no energy. Has enough to go for walks and sniff around where the female dogs have been. Dont want him to starve to death.

Loki

I would say start the prednizone right away if it is an option. it will definatly help with the eating but I dont know what to do about the upset stomache. I did see somthing on here about filtered water, sea salt and honey maybe that could help

DalesDublin

I have to give the prednizone with food. He is not keeping it down. I am so freaking out that I may have taken to long to get Dublin help. Damn economy and lack of finances. He has been just laying around all day. He is sleeping in my bed at moment but tried to get him up to go out for a walk. I was going to carry him but he would have none of that. This is normal with him so I did not freak. I am just letting him have his way at moment until I know for sure he is gonna have to go out. I will try the filtered water, sea salt and honey. I thought salt and water would make you vomit? I just gotta get him to hold down some food until I can see the uncologist. I think it was kinda crapy the Vet called me instead of meeting with me and giving me the report on his biopsy. I did hear her say it was really bad. Lymphoma is, but what stage is he in? Or how bad, since no other visible signs with the ultrasound other than enlarged lymphnodes with fluid and other abnormal things. Not my usual Vet and had to go to less expensive one which I kinda regret just a little. Same outcome but could have been handled better. I saw 3 seperate Vets because of time off and my timing coming in for more blood work. I had to come in as I had money to pay for the blood work. Anyways...beating up on myself. Thanks for your help Loki.

DalesDublin

Forgot to mention the Vet did have the biopsy report. I guess this is why Vet said it was really bad. I thought I heard her say maybe 2 months to live at most on the chemo. This is why I wanted to try doing things at home for him thinking the chemo isnt going to help. Sounds alot like your Vet, Liko. I havent seen the uncologist yet and ancious to do first thing in the morning. Liko, did you guys change your mind or still using home remedies? Did Bruiser have same appetite and nausea problem? Dublin has had nausea for over 2 weeks now. He has only had maybe 2 meals in two weeks and only 2 to 8 ounces of food. I dont know if the IV fluid I am putting under his skin has any nutrients in it? I need to ask more questions or maybe I did and cant remember. I'm still in shock I guess.

DalesDublin

Thanks for your support. Some of the post from you guys I have already read but thanks the same. I'm not sure what stage he is at, cant remember or the Vet did not tell me. I'm losing my mind. I tried the baby food (beef with beef broth) it only lasted about 2 hours and he vomitted. I had a nausea shot given to him yesterday and he held down his food. Not sure how much they feed him but they seemed very pleased with the amount he was able to hold down. He did show signs of discomfort for about 4 hours and scared me to the point that this was it. I took him out for a walk (convincing) and he did go (diahrea) and urinated. He seemed to feel much better and came inside got on the bed and slept at ease. Money is an issue at the moment and I would sale everything I have to help him with the chemo but just not convinced it will do much for him. I will go see the uncologist tomorrow if I can get in to see her. Thats about $200 just for a visit. I think the Vet already spoke to the uncologist about Dublin and I was told 2 months maybe with chemo. Not sure if she did but thats what the Vet told me. So, I was shocked and not sure to see the uncologist. Carecredit has already been tried. Sorry to say they declined me. I guess my credit score is to low for them. I will look at the options you guys gave me. I want to give him every effort to battle the cancer. Atleast give it a bloody nose before it takes him.
Any other suggestions on the vomiting and getting him to hold his food down?
Will the prednazone help with this? Or do I have the vet give him another nausea shot or pills? Has he gone so far that all this is useless. He does not cry out. He shows no signs of swelling lymph nodes and does not cry out if I pick him up or push on stomach area. He just has no energy. Has enough to go for walks and sniff around where the female dogs have been. Dont want him to starve to death.

Meesh

The pred does not have to be given with food. Force it down his throat on its own - put it all the way toward the back of his throat and hold his mouth shut, his natural swallowing behavior will take over. Once he gets his appetite back, you can give it to him with food. Hamlet gets a Prilosec daily to help with sour stomach issues. I understand the frustration you're going through. Hamlet would not eat for me except little tidbits here and there for the first 2 weeks after diagnosis. Eventually I found something he'd eat - meatballs from a local convenience store - and it all turned around from there. But, you have to get the pred into him. As far as the "time left," I always been told and read that the prognosis WITH chemo is 12 to 18 months on average. The other support group I belong to includes dogs who weren't able to complete their protocols (i.e. never went into remission) but there are some who are into their 4th and 5th YEARS of remission. I choose to believe that my Hamlet belongs to the latter group. Take this one day at a time. Remember Dublin doesn't know he has cancer but he can pick up your emotions. So, as difficult as it may be, keep a positive attitude. I used to go into the bathroom alone and cry or try to wait until I was in the shower to cry so Hammy wouldn't see me.
Let us know what the onc says. You'll be in our thoughts.
Michelle, Rufus & Hamlet