Melanie,
I'm glad the news wasn't bad, although you're still left hanging. Let me tell you what I know about soft tissue masses, as that's what Cadence had. First of all, it's sometimes hard to find the "mother" mass. In Cadence's case, she had one in her nasal passage, one in her mouth, and some on her side. The one in her mouth was the one that caused damage to the bones in her jaw, which caused tooth damage as well. They could never quite determine which mass was the "mother" mass, as the oncologist called it. Also, fungal infections mimic cancer on xrays. They ruled out fungal with Cadence when the oncologist did the aspiration of her mass on her side. But don't give up on that--pursue that, b/c she even told me that what looks like cancer on an xray can sometimes be a fungal infection. Fungal infections come with their own set of issues, etc., but that's a heck of a lot better than cancer. My friend's mother had lung cancer and when they did a follow-up xray, they saw a shadow on her lung, so they went in to biopsy it figuring since she already had lung cancer once, this was just another spot. Turns out, when the surgeon got in there, it was a fungal infection. So don't think that it's cancer yet. Also, osteosarcoma does not cross bone planes. I read that over and over again. Soft tissue sarcomas are a "better" type of cancer to have, if a dog is going to have cancer. Our oncologist told us that, too. In Cadence's case, hers was so far advanced that her treatments couldn't keep up with it. But that's not how it always goes, so don't let our story discourage you if that is your final diagnosis. I know how frustrating this is for you, believe me I know. I am here for you no matter what. Stay strong...you and Ginger will get through this together.
As always, Skye and Colby send their world-famous wiggles! I send you a very big HUG!!!
Keep us posted on the lab results!
Nicole, Colby, and Skye
