Lymphoma-Please share your experiences w/ chemotherapy & experiences w/out treating

[gena03]

I am very sorry to hear about Bailey, but I am glad she is responding well to the chemo so far. My Zoe, who is 7, was diagnosed with lymphoma on March 12 this year. It also was only in lymphnodes (neck, shoulder and back of one back leg) but not in any internal organs at that point. I chose not to do chemo, mostly because could not afford it and because it didn't feel like the thing I should do personally. I chose to just do prednisone, she started out on 60mg daily and I have been able to bring her down to 40mg very slowly. The pred has caused her to retain a lot of water and it also suppresses the immune system so I was glad to lower it, even it was just a little. She is tolerating it well. I am also giving her several herbs and supplements. I don't know if they are helping, but i don't think she has gotten any worse and we are 12 weeks past diagnosis. I also eliminated almost all grains from her diet and cook her fresh meat and veggies daily.
I recommend researching IP-6 and Inositol for your Bailey. It boosts natural killer cell activity. I started out giving Zoe two capsules a day and have recently bumped it up to three a day.

I have a new concern and that is where she is losing a patch of hair on the back of her neck, but besides that I think she doing very well considering no chemo.

Good luck to you and Bailey!

 

[Albie]

We have good news to share... Jack is already in remission! I was shocked that it happened so quickly. Jack had his second chemo treatment on Thursday and the oncologist told us the good news. Now, we just need to keep him in remission for a nice long time. His second chemo treatment went pretty well. It was a long day because he had to be dropped off for his doxorubicin infusion. I figured he would be there for 2 to 3 hours, but he ended up staying for 8 hours because the oncologist had a busy day. Jack slept pretty much the whole evening after he got home. The only side effect so far has been loose stool. The vet prescribed metronidazole for that and something called Forti Flora that I sprinkle over his food once a day. My son graduates from high school on June 18 and we have a bunch of out of town guests coming in today for his graduation party. I wish Jack could have a nice quiet weekend to recover from his treatment, but he continues to act like his normal happy self, so hopefully the disruption in his routine won't take too big a toll.

 

[rbrianboyd]

Congrats to Jack!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Bailey too, we were told on Saturday, is in remission after just one treatment!!! They prescribed no medication on her second visit - we ended up just doing a blood count and she was released. The confusing part to me was that we are scheduled next week for another appointment and the oncologist plans on giving her medication at that time. I though once in remission, no medication was necessary, but this is not the case.

I'm happy to tell you that Bailey is hungry, thirsty and most importantly, happy. My only concern is how lethargic she is. Like Oscar's Mama wrote - she is not the same dog she was before she started chemo. Now, she lies around the house, a lot, and it takes coaxing to get her outside and, once there, she is not hesitant at all to go back in - before she was at the door as soon as she noticed me walking towards it and would stay out as long as she could. Hopefully this improves? Don't get me wrong, I am very grateful that she had minimal side effects, feels good and is in remission, I just hoped for her to feel the same as she did before she started the treatment. Maybe I am just asking for too much?

In addition to the chemo, we are also planning on taking bailey to see a holistic veterinarian. It couldn't hurt to have both modern medicine and a holistic approach to her treatment, right? We are already doing the Budwig's, grain free, high protein & k-9 immunity - but are interested to see what a holistic vet says and will let everyone know if we learn anything new.

Best to all of your and your doggies.

Brian

 

[Oscar's mama]

I am happy for the dogs in remission!!! My last piece of advice is to enjoy every waking moment with your babies. Even if you are disappointed that they are not as playful or willing to do things they once loved before treatment, they are still with you and you will be able to tell if they are happy to be around.

My Oscar took a turn for the worse since last weeks attempt at a 2nd remission. He is definitely telling me it's time. I am struggling bigtime while I wait for the vet to call me today to help me make my inevitable decision.

As I said before, I am so HAPPY that we went ahead with the treatment as it gave me another 8 precious months with Oscar and we enjoyed him to the fullest. Best wishes and positive healing vibes to you all.

 

[Albie]

Rough week

We have had the most horrible week... our 12 year old boxer Lacy passed away suddenly on Monday night. We're not quite sure what happened. Being a senior girl, she had a number of health issues, but everything seemed to be under control, so this came as such a shock. I came home from work on Monday and Lacy didn't greet me. I found her lying in a nest of blankets on the side of the sofa and she didn't want to get up. I finally coaxed her up, and she just collapsed to the ground. I rushed her to the vet and they worked on her for a while but there was nothing they could do for her. Her blood pressure was very low, and her gums and ears were chalky. The vet's best guess is she maybe had a tumor that ruptured and she was bleeding internally. We were all able to be with her as she passed which I am grateful for. I would have hated if she passed away alone and scared. Now poor Jack doesn't know what to do with himself. He has been laying around the house and not wanting to eat. We're not sure whether he's feeling sick from his chemo treatment on Thursday or if he is missing is Lacy. He just looks so darn sad. I talked to our vet and she feels he may be missing Lacy and picking up on our emotions too. She also thought this second chemo treatment may just have been harder on his system than the first one. I'm going to give him a couple more days to see if he bounces back. If not, I'll probably run him in for a check up.

 

[shindig]

I am truly sorry to hear Oscar is not doing well, it's so sad. They say 2nd and 3rd remissions are difficult to obtain, depending on the severity of the cancer. Bandit has once again gone back in remission (2 weeks now) and seems perkier than ever. Can't feel any signs of swollen lymph nodes. His oncologist is optimistic and already has a plan layed out for when/if he goes out of remission again. Right now he is on doxorubicin every 3 weeks and if that quits working we will try asparginase or dacarbazine.

Also RIP Lacy....she lived a good, long life and was with you at the end, which is so important. Poor Jack though.

Kevin

 

[rbrianboyd]

Bailey had her second round of Chemo. Everything is looking great - blood count, etc. I asked our oncologist why she would continue to receive medication if in full remission and the answer was a great analogy - she advised just as with antibiotics, you do not stop the medication just because it is starting to work.

As far as Bailey, she is a little more energetic this time as compared to how she was after the first round. So is tolerating the second stage of the CHOP protocol well and so far we have seen no side effects (nausea or diarrhea). Her Prednisone was reduced again - she is now taking 20mg a day and her appetite is still as ferocious as ever.

Hope all is well with everyone else's babies.

Enjoying every minute,

Brian.

 

[Albie]

I'm glad to hear Bailey and Bandit are doing well. That's great news! Jack's second treatment was a little harder on him. My house was crazy busy for the past week and a half so it's hard to know if he wasn't feeling well from the chemo or if it was stress from being out of his normal routine. Fortunately, he seems to be back to normal and was even chewing on his bully stick these past couple of evenings.

How are Zoe and Oscar doing?

Everybody's sweet babies are never far from my thoughts and prayers...

 

[mileswilson]

Number 3

I personally did number three. My vet stated that I will see an improvement however it will come back, symptoms. He was eight and I seen him perk up immediately. He did well for a month and passed shortly after. Do what you think is best, you won't go wrong, I understand how you feel. It's heartbreaking. I just lost another one last Saturday and it happened so fast. Keep us posted and prayers to you and your family.

 

[rbrianboyd]

Bailey is now 3 months into her treatment and is tolerating it well.

Two weeks ago, she received her second dose of Adriamycin. This time around, instead of waiting for her to feel bad and then trying to make her feel better, the oncologist recommended giving her Cerenia the day of her treatment and the day after. I did, and it was a huge improvement for Bailey. She didn't feel bad at all following her treatment and had no side effects whatsoever. I recommend trying this for anyone else treating with chemo.

Last weekend she had the week off and did not receive any treatment and, in my opinion, has continued to get better and better with a bit of time off from the harsh drugs. She has had more energy now than I have seen her with since she was first diagnosed - and its sooooooooooooooo good to enjoy these good times with her.

Best to everyone else and their babies.

Brian