experience with canine lymphoma? UPDATED in original post

[luvwinnie]

Hooch, our rescue bulldog who we think is about 7, was
diagnosed with lymphoma on tuesday. The nodes in his neck, shoulders and hind legs are all enlarged. His neck nodes are larger today than they were on Monday. We were originally getting a biopsy, chest xray, blood work and ultrasound tomorrow, but now the oncologist's office (we have an appt scheduled) called and said THEY do not need a biopsy, the cytology is "definitive".
A little background on Hooch: He was seized from his owner at about age 4 by
animal control because he was in such rough shape (20 lbs underweight and
HORRIBLE allergies that were left untreated so he was half bald with red
inflamed skin, baterial and yeast infections, etc.) he was shut down when we got him and we have learned so much by going through the journey we have been on with him. His fear aggression reared its ugly head while on pred for his horrendous allergies (so no pred can be used if we go the chemo route) and even though we took him off, we still had to work through his aggression and he has made amazing strides. But he will always have "reactive" issues. All Western medical therapies failed to help his allergies, so we sought help from an integrative vet, who really changed his life around. She will play a large part in his "treatment" now, whether it be with chemo or without.
Sorry this is getting so long...We will know more tomorrow and can better make a decision about chemo or not. We are determined to NOT make the END of his life traumatic, he had too much of that in his first 4 yrs. he can get very aggressive at vet depending on what is being done, so his ability to handle nvasive vet appts. will play a large part in our decision.
We only want what is BEST for him...and we need to leave out our own desires I think. I hope that makes sense.
Hooch also has severe hip dysplasia and spinal arthritis. Poor boy.

UPDATE: We decided to do a conservative oral chemo along with a holistic protocol, which shrunk his lymph nodes substantially, but after 2 months his nodes came back in late June, so there was no point giving him another dose of chemo. We are just supporting him now with supplements and homecooked food...and praying. His appetite is still great, thankfully. His only symptom is increased panting/less heat tolerance (I wish it was winter!).
This is such a horrible, aggressive disease.

 

[Goofyluver]

No experience, just wanted to offer a .

 

[perdidobay]

I wish I could say good things, but I lost my 7 year old sheltie to this in 2009.
She had the same symptoms as your beloved pooch when she was diagnosed.
And it is usually to late to save them at that stage.
I chose to start chemo treatments to give her a few more months, which she handled very well and enjoyed 8 more months of life but when chemo could no longer control the disease I let her go. I held her while she was sent to the rainbow bridge and it was very peaceful.

If she had the health issues your dog has I doubt I would have gone to the expense of chemo treatments.



Edited to add: steroids were the first drug my dog was put on, to control the lymph node enlargement...and if that is not an option for your dog that might complicate things.

 

[luvwinnie]

Thank you both. Perdidobay, I am so sorry about your baby.

 

[sunnyday123]

I lost my childhood dog to this. Unfortunately, by the time we found it, it was too late to do anything but make him comfortable. I'm sorry.

 

[tammymacb]

When my girl was diagnosed with lymphoma 3 years ago, I took her to a specialist internist. She offered chemo and said I'd "maybe" have a good 6 more months with her. I asked what the odds were for a cure. She told me 10%. I chose to euthanize her. She was really sick and I didn't want to make her sicker with chemo, to maybe feel good for a few months and then get sick again...

I'm so sorry that you're going through this. I know how difficult it is.

 

[nathalee81]

We lost our pup to a rare form of lymphoma ( cutaneous epitheliotropic ) two weeks ago this Saturday. Basically this type of lymphoma affected his skin tissue. Chemo was not really an option, as the cancer wasn't just in the lymph nodes, but in his skin tissue (it wasn't localized).

We put our pup on Prednisone and antibiotics. We also gave him Omega 3-6-9 twice a day per our vet. We also were advised to give him Salmon (just the stuff you get in your store) at dinner time. Something about the Omega oils were good for him. He was also on Pepcid to help with the tummy upset that Prednisone usually causes. Maybe the Omega oil might be something you could ask about?

Our pup did well for a few months and then declined very quickly. He was in a lot of pain and discomfort. It was one of the hardest decisions we ever had to make, but we knew when it was time. My husband and I are still a mess. We miss our pup SO much.

I respect you only wanting what is best for Hooch and leaving out your own desires. This was the way we felt, too. We so wanted more time with our pup, but we knew it wasn't right for him. We simply had to let him go.

My heart goes out to you and your family and Hooch right now. Hooch is so lucky to have you and your family-I'm sure he has a much better life now than what it could have been with his other owner. Thank you for what you have done for him.

 

[luvwinnie]

thank you all so much. Somethng "funny" happened today...i had written WEEKS ago to the shelter worker who got Hooch out of there and to the rescue and she chose today, the day he is at the vet getting his tests, to write back. Just the thought the timing was meaningful. She was so upset when I wrote back to update her...but so said fate sent him to us a reason and I believe that too.

 

[luvwinnie]

Well, his organs are clear, so that is good news. We see oncologist for consultation tomorrow.

 

[Tuffcookie]

This is what our yellow Lab, Hunter, was diagnosed with.

We chose to not go the chemo route. We took him home but made plans to take him back to be put down in 2 weeks. It was a chance for us to come to terms with everything that had transpired. Even with chemo we would only be buying time. There was no guarantee it would work or for how long. As hard as it was, I didn't want him to suffer any longer. Hardest thing you have to deal with when owning a pet.



TC

 

[kinggoofy]

i posted this on another thread.

Unfortunately we just had to put our "son" down this past sunday. He had Lymphoma. It was diagnosed at the end of March thru a biopsy. He was 9. We felt the lumps for the 1st time at the end of February on his neck and in his throat.

Chemo was an option. 9 weeks for about $4,000. Nothing was gauranteed. We decided to try the prednisone route and antibiotics. This was at the beginning of April.

We did so much reading on the internet about canine lymphoma, we knew the end was near. the breathing and heavy panting were just causing our poor guy so much stress.

Basically everything we read about canine lymphoma was spot on correct.

This was the 2nd time we had to do this. We put our 1st "son" to rest in 2002. He was 13. We probably kept him around 4-6 weeks longer than we should have but we didnt know any better, it was our 1st time.

This time, we knew we would never let our pup suffer any longer than he had to.

He did real well on his meds and prednisone throughout all of April but he took a turn for the worse last friday (4-29), the breathing and panting were just horrible and we knew he was now suffering.

The lymphoma had spread and nose bleeding had started. His nose bled 3 times in 8 days. The emergency vet said that blood is like water, it will find a way out.

His belly and chest was so swollen that his spleen may have been ready to rupture, thats why the bleeding nose. Nose bleeds are VERY uncommon in dogs and that was our red flags when they happened. We had read that on the internet.

we can honestly say, our poor guy suffered for 2 days. We were not going to let it go any longer than that. We took him in at 6am this past sunday morning. As much as we knew the end was coming and it sucked, it had to be done. I said to my DW when we were in the waiting room waiting to go into the room to be with him, we felt releived because the hardest thing was taking the initial step to go to the emergency vet. Once there, we knew he was now going to be pain free again.

I stayed with him the whole way...DW just couldnt do it. I felt so bad for her. When i see her cry....I cry.

It sucks. I dont wish it on anyone. Time will heal and the tears of sadness will become tears of GREAT memories and laughter. We will get a new pup but not until after we take our vacation to WDW in August.

Its real when you see someone is torn over when to make the right decision to do whats best for their dog.

Today was better than yesterday, hopefully tomorrow will be better than today.

My heart goes out to all who have to make a decision on their pet. I was told 9 years ago by the vet when we had to put our 1st one to sleep...."who are you keeping the dog alive for, for him or for you ?"

As much as it hurts and it may be the hardest decision you may ever have to make, your pet is depending on you to do the right thing.

My thoughts to all who have to make this decision at some point.

When you hear people say...."it hurt me more to put my dog to sleep than it did to watch a family member die"....ITS REAL.

Please dont question them for feeling that way. Pets owners are a different "breed".

 

[luvwinnie]

I am so so sorry for your loss, KingGoofy.

 

[tomthebarncat]

Not this form but my beloved little dog "Spike" died of stomach cancer. Like many of the other posters, his time was very limited and I sadly, should have taken him to be euthanized 2-3 days sooner than I did. I will say that caring and comforting my dying dog was the hardest thing I have ever done. It broke my heart and I spent 4,000 Euros trying to change the outcome. I have learned that I cannot go thru that again, and that when it comes time to let Cody Bear go, it will be based on his needs not mine. Actually, I could not even go my hubby took him and held him and cried like a baby. I wish you and your family the best during this very difficult time but especially a big hug to your beloved family member, your dog! It has been over three years and as I write this tears are rolling down my face. Pets are family members and unconditional love!

 

[nancycg56]

I'm so sorry

My Golden, Kona, died from lymphoma 5 years ago and I miss her every day

She survived 4 cancer surgeries over the years but the last one was bad and they didn't think they got it all. Fast forward 4 months and she fell down the stairs so I took her in because she hurt her leg and when they xrayed her, they found it. It was pretty much all through her. I could see it on the xray. So we took her for another consultation but there wasn't really anything else that could be done so we had her put down a couple of days later ~ my DD had to come home from college to say goodbye first.

We also had a lab at the time and he died a year later from a brain tumor. It was a really bad year for us

 

[kinggoofy]

Thanks to all for the well wishes.

We got our pups ashes back today. We had him privately taken care of. Today is a day of closure for us. Our pup is now home FOREVER.

We have been going through photos the last few days. The tears of pain and sadness are slowly turning into tears of laughter and joy....even the bad times when he would drive us up a wall.

Our 1st guy is already in the curio cabinet in the dining room, now our 2nd guy will be getting his own "shelf" in the curio cabinet. We will make the shelf dedicated to him only with a few pics of us with him in a frame along with a couple of his favorite toys and his collars and tags.

We have already started looking at a few pups on the internet that are up for adoption...BUT just looking.

We know we have to wait until after our summer trip to WDW. ....also, we need time to reflect and make sure we dont jump head 1st into falling in love with another pup too soon.

Remember, IF THEY ARE IN YOUR HEART AND IN YOUR MIND, THEY WILL BE WITH YOU FOREVER !!!!!

To the OP and others who have posted, I am thinking of you and hope everything turns out for the best.

Dog and cat owners are a different breed.

 

[luvwinnie]

Update in original post.

 

[jackemail]

So sorry about Hooch---sounds like he has some great parents who care about what is best for him.

 

[kinggoofy]

Update in original post.

Hang in there. You will know when its time. Just beware of the breathing.
Google..."mediastinal lymphoma". Thats what our guy had. You may find it helpful.

trust me when i say this..."I feel your pain" !!!

Hang in there.

KG

 

[luvwinnie]

Thank you.