Brain Tumor Vs. Stroke

[kit-tmom]

Hi All,

I've been treating my kitty for hepatic lipadosis the last few weeks.  She has recovered (at least her bloodwork has) and all her values are normal.  Only, she wont eat on her own still.  She has been wobbly the whole time, which we have attributed to the significant loss of weight she experienced leading up to the fatty liver (we weren't 100% sure what caused it to begin with, but it did all start with noticing she wasn't eating as much of her dry food, so she has a couple of bad teeth removed, but then her eating still declined) Anyway, on Saturday she became VERY wobbly, like she was drunk and was holding her head on a tilt.  We attributed it initially to the start of a new medication (metronidazole) and immediately stopped it.  Her head tilt has gotten better, but she is still quite wobbly (although, she does get around well enough) We went to see a specialist yesterday and they said she could be experiencing one of two things, either a stroke, or a brain tumor.  I could have found out definitively if it was a brain tumor by having an MRI done, but they quoted that at $2,000.  If she goes have a brain tumor, an MRI diagnosis wouldn't change my course of treatment for her.  I wouldn't put her through a major surgery or radiation, as she is 14 and i cant imagine making her go through all that, after all she has been through already.  But since she doesn't have all of the symptoms of either condition, i'm wondering if anyone can lend their own experiences with either condition.  In the meantime, she is going to start steroid medication.  The vet did imply that if it was a stroke (which can happen from the liver failure) that she would gradually show improvement, but that if it is a brain tumor (which can be exacerbated by anesthesia which she has had 2x recently for the dental and feeding tube) she would likely not show much improvement.  Her biggest symptoms is the head tilt (which has improved but can sometimes slightly be seen) and her wobbliness "drunken" walk, and she wont eat food on her own, the only thing she will eat, is broth that she can lick up.  No rapid eye movements. If anyone has experienced a stroke or more importantly, a brain tumor, how quickly can i expect to see a decrease in her quality of life? Right now she is very happy, despite everything.  She is constantly wanting to cuddle, and when you stop petting her she pulls your hand to pet her more.  So much so, she keeps me up in the middle of the night for lots of pets ;-) I don't want to allow her to suffer, i'm just hoping she will tell me when she has had enough. 

 

[babiesmom5]

I had a 15 year old cat who, early one morning, fell off our bed and lost motor control of her hind legs.  She couldn't walk, just roll around or drag herself around on front paws.  It was very frightening.  We rushed her that morning to a specialty emergency hospital 1 1/2 hours away.  She was given a thorough examination by a very good Vet Neurologist who said it was either a stroke or a brain tumor.  Only way to tell was an MRI.  Yes, it was expensive, but I needed to know.  It was a stroke.  The Neurologist explained that cats who have strokes have the unique ability to "relearn" motor skills---just give them some time in a safe, structured environment.  After a couple days at the hospital under close observation, we brought her home.  You could see improvement each day until she had totally regained use of all her limbs and walked around just as good as always!  This cat did have hypertension and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy at the time, so adjustments were made in her medications.  About a year or so later, she had another stroke, but only a minor one and she immediately recovered from this one.  She lived a good life until almost 20 years old.

If it is indeed a stroke, you should see improvement gradually within a day or few days.  Give her a safe environment that she feels comfortable in and just observe her.  It sounds like she is responding to your petting and wants to cuddle which is a positive trend.  I think she will get better over coming days with love and support.

 

[kit-tmom]

Thanks so much for your response. Although, that also makes me worry it is in fact a tumor and not a stroke. Her symptoms were mild but present for awhile, then they became pronounced on Saturday. That was 5 days ago and she definitely isn't better. Her head tilt has resolved but she developed other issues now (she flicks her paw/arm as if trying to flick something off of it, but you can tell she can't control the arm flicking)

 

[mingsmongols]

Im sorry this is happening. It's sounds like you've I been going through a rough time. Did test her blood sugar and thiamine levels? Both cause similar symptoms and are a result of not eating properly.

 

[kit-tmom]

She's had complete blood panels done multiple times and no one's ever mentioned any abnormalities in that. Just not sure if that's part of a normal blood test.

 

[mingsmongols]

It really depends on what their looking for when they do them. Her glucose was probably checked as that's pretty standard with blood work. Thaimine levels are almost never checked even though cats can't produce their own. It's something to keep in mind though.

 

[babiesmom5]

Another possible thing it could be is Vestibular dysfunction (inner ear problem).  This can definitely cause symptoms of loss of motor control.  Last spring about this time, I faced a similar problem with another cat.  I put breakfast down for her and her legs completely gave out on her, she just rolled on the floor.  Alarmed, I immediately took her to the Vet who suggested possibly  Vestibular dysfunction or possibly a brain tumor.  Diagnosis however requires MRI so we then took her to specialty hospital.  The MRI showed "Left sided otitis externa/media"; they saw fluid/inflammation in the inner ear.  The Vet explained that cats have a "drip pan" (Ventral Bulla) at the base of the inner ear.  This can get filled up with fluid, infected and cause Vestibular dysfunction just as she had.  So a surgical procedure was performed on her called a "Ventral Bulla Osteotomy".  When the surgeon got in there, she removed a large amount of purulent fluid--no wonder the poor cat lost her motor skills!  Cat had to wear "the collar" for a while afterwards, but immediately following the operation, her motor skills were better than ever.  (For years prior, she was kind of a "klutz", not the most coordinated cat, and now we know why).  She healed up nicely and has the balance and motor skills of a kitten now.  Oh, and by the way, she will soon be 16 years old!

While an MRI is not cheap, it can shed new light on unresolved problems.  You might want to seek out a Veterinary Specialty hospital where they have a Neurologist on staff.  That is who initially upon examination, suggested the inner ear problem...and sure enough that was correct.  A good Neurologist can upon close physical exam combined with history of your cat, get a good idea of what may be going on with the arm flicking/involuntary control, and suggest possible diagnosis and treatment.  Don't give up hope or think the worst without looking further!

 

[Emma Macey]

Reading everything you all have said has made me feel extremely bad. My cat lucky was put to sleep on the 27th. Olny few days ago. He could olny move his back leg and his head. he couldnt move and had no feeling in his legs. He couldnt stand. He was cold. He body was twitching. I took him straight to the vet.the vet said it wouldn't be fair to leave him like this. Iv read everyone post. I feel so bad. I will iv made I very bad mistake. All your cats have recovered. I would of looked after him. If I knew he would got better. The vet said his brain wasn't working properly. It happened very quick he was. Fine he said me to let him out so he could go to the loo in the cat tray. I feel back to sleep. I don't think for long as I woke wounding why he hasn't ask to come in. So I went to the hall way and find him. He called me. After I saw the way him was. I was very shocked. Picked him straight up put him on my bedroom. I hugged him and said to him what's happened boy.
I feel so bad.

 

[mingsmongols]

Emma, don't feel bad. A serious stroke like that is not something you recover from. I've seen multiple people who had strokes like that in the long term rehabilitation ward with tubes in their stomach to feed them, that have to be turned every two hours for the rest of their lives to prevent skin breakdown. I've never seen one recover when their that bad.

 

[Emma Macey]

Ok thank you. I felt like I betrayed him seeing everyones cats getting better.

 

[babiesmom5]

Emma, I am so very sorry about your cat Lucky. You definitely made the right decision; you did not betray him. Your Vet was correct; it would have been unfair to leave him in that state. He had much more serious issues going on than a simple stroke. My cat had a simple stroke...a cat can, with time recover from that, but not with what your cat had. Your cat would not have had a good quality of life at all...and you would have felt very guilty seeing him like that. He could not have recovered, so you did the most humane, compassionate thing for your dear cat. If he could speak, he would say "thank you" to you as he would not want to live with his dignity so compromised like that.

Lucky is over the "Rainbow Bridge" now joined with many other beloved cats on this site. He is strong and well again. Try to remember him in this way, as he would want to be remembered...and do not feel bad...you did the right thing for your dear Lucky.

 

[Emma Macey]

Thank you for your lovely words. Means a lot x
The vet has kindly said they will keep him until the end of the month so I can try find money to have his ashes home where he belongs. God knows what I will do if I can't.

 

[CatsLady59]

Hello Kit-mom, although this thread is old has been very informative for my cat which just had a similar experience. Just wanted to give you thanks for talking about her case, also for the vet's info regarding her develop. I hope your cat is doing well now, no matter where she is...

 

[kit-tmom]

Hello Kit-mom, although this thread is old has been very informative for my cat which just had a similar experience. Just wanted to give you thanks for talking about her case, also for the vet's info regarding her develop. I hope your cat is doing well now, no matter where she is...

Hi catslady, I'm so sorry you're going through something similar. Unfortunately, my kitty turned out to have a brain tumor, and it very rapidly progresses. The vet was right, she got worse pretty quickly. I had her PTS 4 days after this post. It was so hard, but at the same time is was so visible that I knew it was absolutely the right thing to do. If you need any advice or more information please feel free to ask, I went through so much with her and I know how hard it is.

Melissa

 

[CatsLady59]

Hi catslady, I'm so sorry you're going through something similar. Unfortunately, my kitty turned out to have a brain tumor, and it very rapidly progresses. The vet was right, she got worse pretty quickly. I had her PTS 4 days after this post. It was so hard, but at the same time is was so visible that I knew it was absolutely the right thing to do. If you need any advice or more information please feel free to ask, I went through so much with her and I know how hard it is.

Melissa

Hi Melissa, your answer was very welcome and useful. It took me a while to answer because I was exhausted after all the process. I know is very late, but am sorry about your kitty. My cat outcome was quite different. Four days after the anesthesia and neurological failure, she started walking again and a week later her motor skills were back to normal. She still has a little tremor on her head but only shows when she is about to sleep. It has been two months since then and she has been fine, no neurological problems at all. I am still alarmed because she had mammary cancer prior to the event and the doctor thinks that it could have been micro-metastasis or just a blood cloth. I am still checking on her every day, grateful for the extra time we have left. If something else happens, am grateful to have the chance to ask you about symptoms. Thanks!

 

[sarahhalen]

Hi Kit-tmom, I'm hopeful that you might be able to share add’l information re: your baby's brain tumor. I recently lost my baby girl, she was 17yrs old, I’d rescued her when she was 2. She passed away 3 wks ago suddenly at home, but I still don't know what caused her death (i'm guessing a brain tumor). Over the past year, I’d seen a very gradual, non-specific decline in her.. little things like she would sometimes get disoriented & walk into the kitchen instead of the bathroom where her litter boxes were then cry because she was confused. And the “paw flick” that you mentioned! She did that perhaps 2-3x per day over past 6 months. I thought it was just a pinched nerve or a ‘tic. 3 months ago, she woke up & couldn’t walk straight, lack of coordination. It resolved within 10hrs & back to normal. Fast-forward to 3.5wks ago, she woke up 1 morning walking drunkenly. I watched her all day for signs of improvement. The following morning she woke up & although she could walk straight, she was incredibly lethargic. I’d pick her up & she would just be lax like a wet noodle. I set her down on couch with me & within couple mins, her inner eyelid would start rising. (this never happens unless she is sleeping deeply or heavily sedated, neither of which were possible). I’d gently touch her, her eyes would return to normal then 2 seconds later, inner eyelid would start rising again. I took her to ER that afternoon, they did full exam & although her walk was a little “disjointed” according to vet, he saw no signs of neuro dysfunction. Her eyes were normal, no nystagmus, no head tilt, just mild lack of coordination. He drew blood from her neck & when they lifted her head back to expose her neck, she screamed louder than I’ve ever heard. She hissed, she screamed, she bit. I’ve never seen her like that. The vet even commented she was usually so good with blood draws. Bloodwork was completely normal, so he diagnosed her with ‘back pain’ & prescribed Tramadol x 12hrs. I gave her dose that night, she didn’t eat or sleep on it. So the next day (approx. 16hrs later), I reduced dose to half. She was mildly disoriented & restless on it (think it was opioid dysphoria), I gave her another half dose 14hrs later then Monday morning, after another dose, she was still experiencing restlessness so I decided no more tramadol. (if she has back pain, she needs to rest, not be restless & moving everywhere.) Monday evening, without any pain meds at all, her eyes dilated to size of saucers. She began having problems walking again & when she did rest in her bed, her head hung off the edge at an odd angle. Trust me, I was hysterical at this point but my friend who is a vet came over to see her & he said clearly something neurological was going on but he didn’t think she was in any imminent danger overnight so we scheduled MRI for next morning at his hospital. She died the next morning at 4:30am.

I consulted with a friend who is a human neurosurgeon, I explained the “paw flick” & symptoms leading up to her death. He said most likely a brain tumor on brainstem/back of her neck which would explain why she screamed in pain when they forced her to lift her chin & expose her neck for blooddraw. He said there’s a bundle of nerves back there & tumor probably pressed on them. He also said that 50% of brain tumors present with seizures but the other 50% are very “insidious” because they present with very mild seemingly unassociated symptoms that wax and wane over time.

I had the opportunity to do an autopsy but she hated tests & drs so much, I couldn't put her through that, even after she passed; I love her so much, I just wanted her to rest

I’m sorry for the long thread, I’m just looking for answers or thoughts of what could’ve caused this, any help is appreciated