Diabetes insipidus pu/pd

[MolROYlly]

Hello all...this is my first post other than my intro. I have a 6 yr old brindle boxer spayed female who about a month ago started to show pu/pd symptoms (excessive drinking/urination). She has no other symptoms and is acting completely normal *so far* (besides bedwetting). We went to the vet to get all kinds of testing (cbc, ua, uc, abnominal us) and besides her urine specific gravity being a 1.004, everything came back normal. The only minor elevation was her creatinine level which was still in range but in the upper level. Creatinine/bun ratio was normal however. We ruled out cushings with an LDDS (low dose dexamethasone suppression test) and now we're starting on a desmopressin trial to see if she has central diabetes insipidus which is working great so far, and a good indicator that she indeed has cdi. I am going to an internal medicine specialist and she is recommending i do an MRI of the brain to check for any tumors. With a dog especially a boxer developing these symptoms at a later age, she said she highly suspects a tumor either in the brain/pituitary gland. From what the vet told me, the price of an MRI plus any subsequent biopsies and possible radiation/chemo therapy could cost upwards of $10k or more, and i already spent over $2k so far just on testing alone. Im only 29 yrs old and i really dont have that kind of money. The general consensus from what i've been reading is that the prognosis of cdi is good barring any underlying cause (tumors). Again, she's not showing any neurological signs of any kind. She still has the same energy level (shes always been a medium energy dog). Im really afraid that its either a malignant tumor that just started growing recently and is big enough to disrupt ADH production or its relatively benign tumor thats been growing slowly for years and is just big enough to disrupt ADH. Obviously the former is not good but has anyone experienced the latter?
Has anyone ever had any experience with this disease?
Did you get an MRI done?
Has anyone ever experienced something like this where a definitive diagnosis (possibly life threatening) could not be made because of financial reasons?

Thank you guys in advance!

 

[MolROYlly]

Also i would like to ask for your opinions...if you were in my shoes and lets say you could scrounge up an additional $2.5k for an MRI but in no way could you afford to get any following treatment which could cost up to an additional of $5-7k. Would you get an MRI done solely for a piece of mind, knowing that you cant afford any other treatment? Thanks again

 

[Jinnytee]

Hi ... I am afraid that I don't have experience with CDI, but I just wanted to give you some emotional support. Firstly, that is a huge amount of money to try to pull out of nowhere, and I can see why it is so difficult for you to now make the best decision.

Have you spoken to the vet about payment plan options ..... to see if you could afford the surgery if the cost was spread out over time ? If there are no payment options, and you know that there is no possible way to afford surgery, then I do wonder if it is worth spending 2k on getting the MRI. You will have a difinitive diagnosis, but then you would be tied about doing something about it.

On the other hand, if the MRI can identify that it is a small or slow growing tumour that will not effect the quality of your girl's life ( with the cdi controlled medically ) for some time, then that may also give you some peace of mind that if you leave the surgery, you will still be able to make the most of the next couple of years of your girl's life.

I would also see if you can get as much information about survival rates/ life quality after surgery. If there is a good success rate and longevity expected, then that makes me think that it would be worth pulling out all the stops to try to afford the surgery.

After saying all that, here in the Caribbean our vetinary care is not high tech. There are no canine MRI scanners, no specialist vets. Often our dogs are diagnosed the old fashioned way, by symptoms and treatment can be trial and error. If one of my dogs presented with your girls symptoms, the vet may suspect a tumour, but we would never know for sure, and there would be no option for surgery. So my decision would be a lot easier than yours, but essentially the same .... to do whatever could be done within available means ( finacial in your case ) to keep my dog as healthy as symptom free as possible, and happy and comfortable ..... and to love her with all my heart.

Sending lots of good wishes for you and your girl. xx

 

[MolROYlly]

Hey thanks for your support! You bring up some good plans to pursue, especially on the payment plans...although i have thought about it a little and dreading the interest rates that are associated with it...its definitely worth looking into. As far as getting an MRI for a piece of mind...thats exactly my concern...i think i would be stressed out way more knowing that theres a tumor growing in her and i cant do anything about it. On the other hand...i am completely stressed out right now not knowing whether there is a tumor or not. From my research, "most" or a "significant" amount of cases of cdi in dogs are idiopathic in nature, meaning the underlying cause is not known. I brought this up to my doctor and while she agreed, thats usually the case with younger dogs suddenly developing cdi. The reason i bring this up is because it will take a load off my heart if i do get an MRI and it reveals no tumors anywhere, which is a possibility, and the reason why im considering getting one done.
From what ive been told, surgery is only an option if the tumor is in the brain (depending on location) and not in the pituitary gland. The only way surgery is an option is if they can 100% guarantee that they can remove the entire tumor, which will effectively cure her. The other option is radiation therapy, which is not only harsh on the dog, but also may only add 1-2 yrs of life if she has a malignant tumor which she only has a few months to live. Radiation therapy is typically more expensive as well.
But thanks agAin for your support! Right now im gathering up all my valuables to see how much they're worth....possible trip to a pawn shop :/