Possible cancer misdiagnosis?

[amcmillan]

I guess I'm just looking for more information or anyone who has experienced the same type of syptoms with their dog when they've had cancer or if it could possibly be something else.

We have a 7 year old white boxer who started losing wieght in January with no change in diet. We then noticed a lump in between where his ribs and hind legs are. It wasn't protruding very much but was oblong and flat at about 6 inches across (and very hard). We took him in and they did a needle biopsy which came back as a cyst(no cancerous cells). The vet was concerned because she said it was larger than what a cyst should be. They wanted to run $500 more in bloodwork,etc. and told me they wouldn't be able to remove it at their office anyway. At this point i just wanted it removed. So I took him to a different vet that a friend of mine told me about and he did another needle biopsy (they have a lab right onsite) and came back and told us it was stage 3 malignant cancer. He said there was a lot of blood and that it seemed like maybe there was multiple tumors encased in the mass which is why the first diagnosis came back not detecting the cancer. He told us it wouldn't be fair to try and remove it because it looked like it started very deep and grew outwards and was larger than you would think by just looking at it. He said with it being stage 3 he just recommended taking him home and enjoying what time we have left with him. I really didn't like this vet (he was very blunt/brash and didn't seem real caring) and he seemed to have been sure it was cancer before he even did the test. I know I'm not even close to a vet but it all seemed kind of strange to me (multiple tumors in one mass sounded kind of wierd. Has anyone heard of that before?)He also didn't go through any other options other than just take him home. Maybe I'm just grasping at straws or am not willing to accept the diagnosis, but I'm thinking of taking him in one more time to a different place to be sure it's malignant and it is indeed cancer. I just keep hearing different horror stories of wrong diagnosis'. A friend of mine told me about her neighbor's dog who got into some poison which thinned his blood and for some reason had a huge tumor like mass on his side which was just filled with blood, but was not cancer. Has anyone had any misdiagnosis' like this or am I just being ridiculous? I can't see a vet out and out lying, but i guess part of me for whatever reason is not trusting what he said just with his attitude and everything else......The tumor has grown more and he's lost some more wieght. He still eats like a horse and is happy but he has slowed down some. I guess I'm just wondering if there's something else it could be. Any info would be helpful.

 

[Murp.mm]

I've been reading your post and first of all I want to say you are an angel. You have adopted 2 babies and your white boxer is deaf. I am so sorry to hear that Clarence is not well and you are going through this horrible experience. I don't have much to tell you except that I will keep you and your baby in my thoughts and prayers. All the best. Hope the vet is wrong on this diagnosis. Keeping fingers and paws crossed for you.

 

[Jill's boxer]

I am so sorry you are going through this. I would most definitely find another vet that you are comfortable with and have them evaluate your dog. You can have the records from this vet sent to them so they can review what has already been done as well. Yes, tumors can be "clumped together" and grow/spread so that what you think is one mass is actually a network of tumors, they are very vascular which is why they are able to spread so rapidly and to so many areas. An actual punch biopsy or surgical biopsy will give you a much better idea of what you are dealing with, a needle aspirate is a good start to determine if the cells are cancerous or not, but it is not thorough enough to base a full diagnosis (and death sentence, basically as this vet did) in my opinion. Also, generally most vets I have worked for will do chest xrays as well to determine if the cancer has spread to other areas...I wish you the best, and hope you are able to get more information/options from another vet that you feel more comfortable with.

 

[sweetboxer]

I would find a good oncologist for your baby and start again there. My Cadence had a diagnosis of cancer and the first vet we took her to was very blunt and rude as well, telling me she had osteosarcoma, bone cancer, and she would die a very painful death and that I should do her a favor and put her down immediately. Keep in mind she was 18 months at the time. I asked for an oncologist's name, and I ended up with one of the best oncologists in the nation. She ended up telling me that the first vet misdiagnosed her. She didn't have osteosarcoma in her jaw, she had a soft tissue sarcoma in her nasal cavity. She did some biopsies of some other lumps that she had on her side, and came back with the diagnosis that same day, while we were in the office. She started her on chemo right then and there, too. Unfortunately for us, Cadence's cancer was too malignant and the chemo only helped for a short time. We lost her a month later. But we had seen 2 vets before seeing the oncologist, and neither one of them helped us at all, except for giving us heartache and misdiagnoses. So I would research oncologists where you live and get him in there.
I send you many hugs, as I know the road you are on is a difficult one. Please keep us posted on what you find out.

 

[amcmillan]

Thank you for the kind words and the helpful input. I just searched on the internet for veterinary oncology in our area and found a place that I liked that I'm going to call tomorrow. I think that will give me more piece of mind knowing exactly what is going on and maybe hearing it again (and not sitting here obsessing over whether this vet knew what he was talking about, eventhough he may have :(....) and if there are any further care options. Thank you again.