Anyone have a boxer with lung cancer? (this is long - sorry)

[Suze]

I'm new to BW - surfed in to try to find help or maybe just someone who is crazy about their dog(s) as we are. I have an 8 year old neutred fellow named Drake. He's had a bit of a cough for the last few months, which our vet attributed it to his hear murmur and the beginnings of congestive heart failure...not bad enough to treat...

Last Friday, he seemed a bit off, shortness of breath, lethargic & extra drool (which is alot if there's extra). We brought him in to the closest clinic (our vets an hour away) and they sent him thru to the ER. They all assumed CHF & were going to treat him with diuretics after confirming the diagnosis. Unfortunately for all of us, his diagnosis was much worse. His x-ray showed that Drake had pneumonia (with his right lung full of fluids & not functioning) & 4 to 5 quarter sized tumors in his chest, with a final diagnosis of lung cancer... The oncologist that was passing thru and saw the xray suggested euthinasia that evening - but they hadn't seen him just a few days earlier playing puppy like.

We opted for the treatment of the pneumonia with IV antibiotics which started that evening. The next day, he was worse, but I opted to keep the treatment going for a full 24 hours (I'm a people nurse, so I know that it takes a bit of time for the treatment to take effect)...The vet was excellent and let us sit in the ICU with him on his blanket and just hold him. They started him on oxygen as he wasn't maintaining the levels on his own. It wasn't looking good. We did ALOT of crying...

On Sunday, I called at 5am and they said he was holding his own. I told them we'd be in at 11 and when we showed up, there he was - up and wagging his tail, barking, so excited to see us and ready to leave!! It felt like a miracle - we brought him home 48 hours after he was admitted, on a plethora of meds (which he takes so easily thank goodness)...these are all to treat his acute pneumonia - there's no treatment for him as far as the cancer goes. Maybe 'palliative' once he's over this crisis.

So now here we are, he's home, back to "normal" - still has his cough - which we don't expect to get too much better - but everyone is So happy to have him home...

But now what?? We have our oldest guy, with untreatable lung cancer. It's too far gone to treat - I say we don't tell him he has it - but seriously i'm not sure what's next. Dealing with people is a whole lot easier than with MY baby!!

Anyone out there have any thoughts, suggestions or anything that might help?

Thanks, from Drake & his family.

 

[Poohsmom]

HI and welcome. So sorry to hear about your baby. I don't have any advice to offer but am sending you some stay strong and positive vibes your way.

P.S. Be sure to post your introduction

Sue and the kids,Pooh,Bownser,Dozer & Cissy
Buddy & Dusty,romping at the bridge

 

[Jen79]

Hi Welcome to Boxerworld. Sorry that your baby is sick...

A couple of years ago my 7 year old shepherd mix was diagnosed with lung cancer. He too, had had a cough to start with. My parents (who he lived with) took him to the vet and they initally diagnosed bronchitis and prescribed antibiotics accordingly. After about a week he seemed better, but after that went downhill again. A month after his initial diagnosis, he was coughing again, had lost a lot of weight and was generally looking a bit rough so they took him back to the vet.
The vet did x-rays of his chest and found that they were full of cancer. They also found, whilst he was sedated for the x-ray, that he was bleeding into his trachea. He was pretty bad and we were told there was nothing they could do. I was shocked, I had never heard of a dog having lung cancer and wondered what happened to cause it (we're not smokers).
The next day we sent him to The Bridge. It was 40+ degrees celscius (sp?) and he was struggling....we couldn't let him suffer anymore. My poor little man. I'd raised him from a tiny puppy and he was still "Mummy's Boy" even after I had left home and only came by to visit.

Sorry, I didn't mean to take over your post...I just wanted to let you know that there's someone out there whose been there before and knows how you feel.
Luckily for you it looks like you may have your baby with you for a little while yet, and I really hope you do. Enjoy every moment of the time you have left and spoil him rotten.
I don't have any suggestions for you other than that. Just love him and enjoy him and keep him comfortable until his time comes. You will know in your heart when that is.
Take care and give lots of hugs to Drake from everyone here at Boxerworld.

 

[Mama_Zookeeper]

Wow, I am so sorry about Drake's diagnosis. I have to agree...don't tell him.
All kidding aside I am not sure what is the next step for you guys, but a good diet and lot of loving never hurts. I would think anything that will boost his immune system and keep him relatively healthy and comfortable would be in order. Did the vet say anything about his "quality of life"...is he in any discomfort? Please keep us updated and I am sending out as many healing vibes as possible!

Dora

By the way, you should post an introduction ASAP. Go to the introduction section as it is stated in the rules when you join this great site.

 

[sinbad'smom]

so sorry to hear about your baby....just give him lots of hugs and love and hopefully you will have him with you awhile yet..keep us posted...boxer sloppy kisses from sinbad and sierra....dora

 

[Alicia Sharp]

Boxer with lung cancer

First, I just want to say I'm so very sorry to hear about your baby. My family and I just went through this in September of 2004. All I can tell you is to make him as comfortable as possible, give him all of those extra treats or anything he else she wants, and most of all, cherish every moment you have with him. We lost our Jasmine to lung cancer on September 13th. When she was diagnosed, her cancer was too far gone to treat as well, so all we could do was make her comfortable. We put her on Tussigon, which virtually eliminated her coughing, and she seemed to be doing well.

At the time, I thought it best to let her live out her days at home, and hopefully die peacefully in her sleep. However, that is not what happened. I don't know if I should tell you this, but I feel I should, as I was taken by surprise by the turn of events and had I known what could happen, my decision may have been different. Jasmine got sick one evening, and I had planned to take her in to see the vet the next morning, but I never got the chance. She apparently starting hemmoraging from her lungs sometime in the early morning, and when I got up to get ready for work, I found in her lying in the floor, surrounded by a pool of blood - she was already gone. I've had to deal with death in the past, but this was probably one of the most traumatic experiences of my life. I still can't shake the image of her lying there like that. For days I couldn't sleep for thinking about her and wondering if she was in pain and if I had made the wrong decision. I think maybe her death would have been easier to deal with had I helped her find peace sooner.

I don't mean to upset you. I'm only telling you this because I just want you to be prepared for what might happen, because I wasn't. I think having the most information possible helps to make any decision easier, whatever that decision is. Hang in there sweetie. You and your baby will be in my prayers.

Alicia

Momma to:
Chynna, 1 yr. old, Flashy brindle - natural
Tanner, 1 yr. old flashy fawn - natural
*Jasmine, my baby for 11 years, flashy fawn - natural - passed to the Bridge 09/04*

 

[Suze]

thanks for all the info/insight

Hi Everyone

Things are still going well here at home with Drake...He is taking all of his antibiotics without any problems and seems to be back to his pre-diagnosis state! I'm doing chest physio on him every few hours to keep his lungs clear -as well as some play - which he still loves...He runs to come back inside after a quick trip outside - the cold weather isn't too great for his lungs at this point - so our outside time is limited... He continues to have his cough every few hours - today seems a bit more frequent, though we did have some friends in last nite and he was awfully excited to see them all - so I'm attributing it to his amount of activity...

I'm so sorry to hear all the sad stories - breaks my heart - and thank you so much Alicia for the heads up - I can't imagine what you went thru with Jasmine - that's why I joined this site - I knew there'd be someone out there to give me some idea of what we may encounter...God forbid it's as horrific as what you went thru...my heart goes out to you and your family...

Lucky for us our ER Vet is 15 minutes down the road - so as soon as I see that Drake's condition changes, we will bring him in to have him checked out asap...The thought of that day makes my eyes well up as I type - I have no desire to leave my babies at all right now - we are on vacation this week and will be spending all of our time home with the pups...crazy as it may seem to some - I know it won't to anyone who happens in on this site!

Again thanks for the words of encouragement and all the vibes they're working well for us and each and every day is a gift (that's why they call it the present)...

Cheers
Suzy

 

[SuzanneC]

Suzy, I'm so sorry to hear your Drake has cancer. You both will be in my thoughts.

I think your decision to give Drake a chance and not euthanize right away was the right one. In my experience, people who don't get the change to say their goodbyes have a much harder time grieving for their lost friends. As I posted in a thread in the Rainbow Bridge forum last night, one of my friends had a Dalmatian who nearly died from a ruptured hemangiosarcoma last May. During the surgery to remove her spleen, the surgeon found the cancer also extensively involved the liver, and recommended euthanasia without waking the dog up. My friend opted not to euthanize, and ended up having more than nine more months with her dog. We are so attached to our dogs, we need the extra time to let them know how much they mean to us.