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My good boy, Sunny, has Lymphoma

31K views 377 replies 28 participants last post by  Dave S 
#1 ·
Sunny just turned nine earlier this month. He had a spill jumping on the couch and ended up with an enormous bruise and bleeding under his armpit. He was in pain and limping, even though he merely missed getting up on the couch the first time. The bruising spread, leading to tests and finally to diagnosis of malignant lymphoma. I think the fall unmasked his illness. I had not felt any lymph swelling during grooming. He has a massive coat, which makes feeling around a little harder.

I have been reading all your posts regarding treatment options. I'm so glad this forum exists. We are having a tremendous amount of sadness, as do you all. We're also worried about our golden girl, who will be thirteen in October. We have been dreading her passing and were shocked to see our (young!) boy have this develop so quickly!

I appreciate any help with the shock and awe of the whole thing. We are speaking to the vet tomorrow about the options, which we have familiarized ourselves with. It's the quickness of the whole thing that is hard to handle. He has slowed down since the fall and injury two weeks ago. Before that there was no sign of anything wrong.

He is sleeping a lot but happy when awake, though not the same boy, we can tell. Eating a lot and drinking tons of water. I will probably ask some better questions as I know more of what to ask.
 

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#5 ·
Sorry about the unexpected news. Our 10 year old was diagnosed with lymphoma one year ago last April. He had a lump in his throat. Our local vet did a biopsy. He was diagnosed with slow growing t-cell lymphoma. Our next step was to visit k-state veterinary school. Our entire day was spent running him through tests. His oncologist visited with us at the end of the day. It was a very long day. On the negative side it had spread all over - even in his spleen. On the positive side it was a very slow growing cancer.
We were basically given three options: 1. A pretty intense ( and expensive- approximately$5000) chemo program 2. A less expensive but very mild chemo program. 3. Wait and watch. I believe this is a very personal ( and agonizing) decision.
We knew a cure was not an option for our baby. The oncologist explained that there are not a lot of studies on t- cell lymphoma but there are dogs that have lived maybe a couple of years without treatment. So in the end we decided on no chemo.At this point we have had a year and a half with our dear friend. It is so strange because some days Iam just filled with joy when I look at him but other days I look at him and cry my eyes out knowing what our certain end will be.
I so wish I could tell you there will be an easy answer to this for you but cancer is an ugly disease. It is a roller coaster ride!!!
It breaks my heart you got the diagnosis. Sorry about the long post but I know when we found out I researched day and night and wanted to hear other people's experiences. Best wishes!
 
#10 ·
Sorry about the unexpected news. Our 10 year old was diagnosed with lymphoma one year ago last April. He had a lump in his throat. Our local vet did a biopsy. He was diagnosed with slow growing t-cell lymphoma. Our next step was to visit k-state veterinary school. Our entire day was spent running him through tests. His oncologist visited with us at the end of the day. It was a very long day. On the negative side it had spread all over - even in his spleen. On the positive side it was a very slow growing cancer.

We were basically given three options: 1. A pretty intense ( and expensive- approximately$5000) chemo program 2. A less expensive but very mild chemo program. 3. Wait and watch. I believe this is a very personal ( and agonizing) decision.

We knew a cure was not an option for our baby. The oncologist explained that there are not a lot of studies on t- cell lymphoma but there are dogs that have lived maybe a couple of years without treatment. So in the end we decided on no chemo.At this point we have had a year and a half with our dear friend. It is so strange because some days Iam just filled with joy when I look at him but other days I look at him and cry my eyes out knowing what our certain end will be.

I so wish I could tell you there will be an easy answer to this for you but cancer is an ugly disease. It is a roller coaster ride!!!

It breaks my heart you got the diagnosis. Sorry about the long post but I know when we found out I researched day and night and wanted to hear other people's experiences. Best wishes!


Please see my reply below. I am not experienced in using this forum.


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#7 · (Edited)
Kansas Gold, Thank you so much for your long reply. I haven't read any reports like yours where a golden survived that long without treatment. We had a biopsy but I Don't know what type it is. I asked the vet when he called and he said all that would be found out if we took him to an oncologist. I made an appt. To see our vet tomorrow to discuss things. One of those things is if the biopsy itself can show what type. B or T.

Thank goodness you have had this time with your golden. I would love to have a stretch ahead of us like that. Did you use prednisone at all? I hear it makes the cancer come roaring back when it stops working (because it has suppressed the immune system).
 
#13 ·
When you read a post, on the lower right hand corner, you will see the following buttons in the post-the first one on the left is the "edit"-you can edit your post. Next is the "quote" button, you can quote a member's post as I have done with your post. The next button is the "multi quote" button-this allows you to quote multiple posts made by members and the last is the "quick reply" button to post a reply quickly.
 
#11 ·
Your biopsy should tell you what type of cell- either b or t. Then you want to know if it is aggressive ( faster growing) or indolent ( slower growing). As a generalization, chemotherapy (although may not be curative) tends to work better with faster growing type cells. Next step is to find out how far the cancer has spread-- other lymph node sites beyond where it was found, spleen, bone etc.

We have not used prednisone with Takoda. I am not a huge fan of steroids- which is what prednisone is. It certainly has its place and can buy you a short amount of time but I don't care for the side effects.
 
#12 ·
Your biopsy should tell you what type of cell- either b or t. Then you want to know if it is aggressive ( faster growing) or indolent ( slower growing). As a generalization, chemotherapy (although may not be curative) tends to work better with faster growing type cells. Next step is to find out how far the cancer has spread-- other lymph node sites beyond where it was found, spleen, bone etc.



We have not used prednisone with Takoda. I am not a huge fan of steroids- which is what prednisone is. It certainly has its place and can buy you a short amount of time but I don't care for the side effects.


Thank you. I will add these issues to my questions for the vet tomorrow.


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#14 ·
Abby

Abby

In order to reply I usually use the REPLY button on the left bottom of the post, or the quick reply. I do think the quick reply shows all your info, too. If you want to send a private message (Upper Right Hand Corner of Forum) you have to have 15 posts first. So post away. If you click on a Members Name, there will be a drop down and some have an option of emailing them.

I am so sorry about Sunny's diagnosis.
 
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#16 · (Edited)
Abby

In order to reply I usually use the REPLY button on the left bottom of the post, or the quick reply. I do think the quick reply shows all your info, too. If you want to send a private message (Upper Right Hand Corner of Forum) you have to have 15 posts first. So post away. If you click on a Members Name, there will be a drop down and some have an option of emailing them.

I am so sorry about Sunny's diagnosis.
Do you mean 15 different posts? Not including replies in this post? Thanks.
 
#18 ·
Sunny has really slowed down. This boy used to sit and watch my face in the morning for any sign of waking so he could eat. He was asleep when I woke up today. Now he is lying here after waking, and he looks so very tired. We also found a large lump on his side yesterday. Firm. All of his lymph nodes are swollen and he has had bleeding under the skin and a giant bruise on his chest. I fear that something burst when that happened. We thought it was from a fall. My sense is that he is quite ill. And not just recently. I didn't know that drinking more water was a sign to watch for illness. I thought he was drinking more because its summer in the desert. So I think he's had symptoms before the injury. There is no oncologist in our area and I don't know how long it takes to get an appt. But his decline has been rapid and I'm not sure he will make it. His strength is waning. Hard to get up, you know? He weighs 113 lbs! He isn't all fat, he is a VERY LARGE golden! His head is enormous. We got him from a show line because he was too big for the breed.

We see the vet today to ask lots of questions about prednisone, about an oncologist, about the end and how to know and prepare for it. I'm torn about prednisone. Apparently it causes an aggressive ending because it allows the cancer free reign? How is that a good thing? If you have an opinion about pred vs no pred (if chemo isn't a choice) please feel free to share it with us. I expect us to be bringing it home with us today. Thank you.


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#19 ·
Sunny



I am sorry to hear that Sunny is slowing down. When you go to the vet today ask all of the questions you've asked here and they will have some good answers. There have been many people here that have given their dogs prednisone and I think the main side effects were increased thirst, drinking and urination. If our dogs were to have the same diagnosis and were older, we would not go the chemo route, but try the prednisone. I lost my Golden Girl, Smooch, at the age of 11 or 12 to either lymphoma or hemangiosarcoma. She was having trouble getting up for quite awhile, but once up was fine. When she didn't want to eat, I hand fed her, and I knew something was wrong. She also had a gagging sounding cough and coughed up a little blood. The vet took xrays of her chest and found that she only had 10% of her lung function, so we chose to hold her and be with her as she crossed to the Rainbow Bridge. Praying for sweet Sunny. Please let us know what the vet says.
 
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#22 ·
Your vet will be able to help you through this process. There probably is no right or wrong choice on how to treat this awful disease. It is a very personal decision and just like people, each dog will respond differently to a specific treatment or in our case no treatment. I hope I didn't scare you about prednisone. It definitely has a place as a treatment. It is not so much that it will cause the cancer to flare but it will definitely mask some symptoms for a while- and there is nothing wrong with that. My thoughts are with you. The best medicine is lots of kisses and hugs.
 
#24 ·
I hope you're vet appointment goes well. Sounds like handsome Sunny is having a very rough time; I hope the vet can help or give some good insight. When my dog had lymphoma we took her to a leading oncologist (and professor) at Florida University. He is top of his field. He says that pred has it's place but it's a very last resort to relieve pain and induce hunger. He was upset with our vet (who was one of his students) who had given my dog pred before having the full cancer testing because Pred masks whatever is going on and the test results are not accurate as Pred will mask whtever is going on and if it's cancer it won't show up on a test. My dog went through chemo for a couple months and then lost her battle. I personally wouldn't do chemo again (individual chooce_ it was hard on my dog and in the end it was really for me (to keep her as long as possible) then letting her go and be and pain free. In the end she was given pred to help her with pain and eating. Once she stopped eating and could barely walk (and she loved to walk) we knew the pred stopped working and her time had come. Sorry I was just sharing my story, I hope your vet helps you through this very difficult time and answers all your questions/concerns. Give Sunny big hugs and pats from us her in the forum.
 
#26 ·
Thank you for your detailed comment. It's so helpful to hear from those who have been through this before. I had heard about the pred and timing it, not using too soon. That's one of the things I am going to ask about today. Once you start it, you are on a trajectory from what I have read. Sunny has been asleep all day. Not an up day for him.


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#28 ·
He is beautiful, sorry for the bad news. Enjoy your time with him. Hugs to you -


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#29 ·
Yesterday was stressful and frustrating. Someone didn't order the biopsy stained to show the type of lymphoma. The vet said it's usually requested, he didn't know why it wasn't. So they called the lab and requested it. We will get results Tuesday or Wednesday. We want to know, kind of a mini staging to get us started, given that the biopsy has already occurred. It seems like it would matter whether it was a fast or slow L if we use prednisone instead of chemo. So, frustrated and talked to him a little about choices, no chemo docs locally, and his suture wound was bothering him. We gave him some carprofen and that helped his mood and movement last night. Will give him more today and tomorrow. Then he said the stitches should have stopped bothering him by the. I have no news, just that it continues to make us very sad to contemplate this boy not being here any more.

He did say that the prednisone does not accelerate the cancer, just masks it. I had said, does it accelerate the cancer because pred dampens the immune system? He said his immune system is broken, so no, it doesn't. It is a form of chemo, albeit a mild one, in that it will shrink the tumors and give some relief. He went over some of the pros and cons of chemo that need to be combined with our dog, his condition, our ability to get to out of town vet, the costs etc.. I can tell this vet is primarily concerned with my dog's comfort.

I said it's hard to think of his impending death when he was fine two weeks ago. It's so fast. He said that's the crux of medicine. A dog can be injured and suddenly you have these life or death decisions to make. That's medicine. I shudder to think what it must be like to be a vet.

I hope the carprofen makes Sunny happier today and not sleeping the day away. I will keep in touch as I know more.


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#31 ·
Sunny



I am so very sorry for all you and Sunny are going through. Praying the carprofen makes him more comfortable. If it is any consolation to you, I would do what you are doing. Sounds like the vet is concerned with Sunny's comfort.
 
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#34 ·
Hi there,
Doesn't sound like it was the best vet visit. I'm glad sunny was given carprofen and it's helping some. How long have you seen you vet? When I read your post I don't get the best feeling about his ability to deal with this situation. Is there possibly another vet in the area where you could get a second opinion. pr a vet teaching hospital. I know how hard it is going to be waiting for those test results. You just keep giving sunny all the love and support you are and take everything a day at a time.

P.S. - I have never heard that pred is a form of chemo. Pred may be used when chemo is given to help deal with the side effects but the one thing that I've never heard is that it will shrink a tumor. That's part of the reason your vet scares me.

Whoops - I just read your second note ...I'm happy you're going to see an Oncologist. That makes me feel better about the care you will receive. Good luck!
 
#37 ·
My mistake, I didn't mean shrink a tumor (did I say that?) I meant shrink the lymph node. Sorry, my brain is on vacation since we've been so worried. Don't judge my vet by my description. Another vet in the office did the biopsy and sent it out.


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#41 ·
abbysunnymom

Checking in on you, Abby and Sunny! Hugs to them.
Don't worry, at all, we were all new at one time. You will get used to this.
I sent you a private message the other day, nothing important. Wondered if you were able to open it.
Look to toward center top of main page in green it says Private Messages. You double click and then double click on the message. You now have more than 15 posts so if you want to send someone a private message, you should be able to.
 
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#42 ·
Checking in on you, Abby and Sunny! Hugs to them.

Don't worry, at all, we were all new at one time. You will get used to this.

I sent you a private message the other day, nothing important. Wondered if you were able to open it.

Look to toward center top of main page in green it says Private Messages. You double click and then double click on the message. You now have more than 15 posts so if you want to send someone a private message, you should be able to.


I answered your private message. Did it not go through? I'll try it again...


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#44 · (Edited)
Trying to attach photo... Okay, it only does one of them but that's better than none. I will get the hang of this. I was partway through grooming sunny when I found the enormous bruise. I had washed and dried and brushed and then was starting to even out some trimming I had been doing (a little at a time because he gets bored) and now, two weeks later, he looks like a ragamuffin. �� Since his surgery I haven't done anything but brush him a little. Will try to fix him up a little before the vet Tuesday.
 

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