Suspected Lymphoma. Surgical Biopsy Thoughts

[ElevenFurbabies]

Hello! New here. 1st post.I have 13 y.o. female DSH. We took her to new vet recently (a feline specialist only) here in north Atlanta for Senior Wellness. She had lost 1.5lbs. since July 2019 (now 13.8lbs). She has occasional vomiting which had increased recently. Labs looked good except elevated liver markers. Plan was to check them again 6 weeks. Meantime, my cat started having acute vomiting. Took her in. They gave her fluids, meds for pain and nausea, etc. Sent out for specialized blood work, including Feline GI Lymphoma Panel which came back at 7.7 out of 10 as consistent with small cell lymphoma. They did ultrasound which showed diffuse jejunal and ileal thickening. R/o IBD vs lymphoma. Vet now suggests surgical biopsy -- doesn't feel comfortable giving chlorambucil without it. Our cat is eating, going to bathroom and has only vomited twice in 6 weeks. Overall, pretty healthy. Torn as to what to do. Surgery (even with a very experienced specialist vet) is risky. Choices: 1) Surgical biopsy to confirm, then treat; 2) Treat as IBD, i.e. prednisolone.

A couple years ago, my Smokey Kitty finally sadly passed at 17 yo Six years prior to her passing she had developed a large marble-shaped lump between her eyes. I woke up one morning just to find she was bleeding behind her eyes and from her mouth and rushed her to ER Vet ran all types of tests and came to diagnosis of feline lymphoma. Chemo and radiation therapy were recommended. Smokey was tiny and fragile so we turned it down, however, and came home to "research". We found online reputable site and began using turmeric/curcumin with piperine gelcaps, at first twice a day, and once bump between kitty's eyes "dissolved", continued giving it to her once a day the remainder of her six years with us. Vet had given her two months without treatment and six months IF chemo and radiation therapy had begun. So glad we did the research, this alternative med worked for Smokey, and got to spend an additional six years with kitty.

 

[ElevenFurbabies]

A couple years ago, my Smokey Kitty finally sadly passed at 17 yo Six years prior to her passing she had developed a large marble-shaped lump between her eyes. I woke up one morning just to find she was bleeding behind her eyes and from her mouth and rushed her to ER Vet ran all types of tests and came to diagnosis of feline lymphoma. Chemo and radiation therapy were recommended. Smokey was tiny and fragile so we turned it down, however, and came home to "research". We found online reputable site and began using turmeric/curcumin with piperine gelcaps, at first twice a day, and once bump between kitty's eyes "dissolved", continued giving it to her once a day the remainder of her six years with us. Vet had given her two months without treatment and six months IF chemo and radiation therapy had begun. So glad we did the research, this alternative med worked for Smokey, and got to spend an additional six years with kitty.
[/QUOTE
There are others choices regarding lymphoma treatment.

 

[savedbycat9]

What are the other choices for lymphoma treatment? Also doesn't it spread rapidly?

 

[brocklanders]

Update: My cat biopsy on 09/23. Results showed positive for small cell lymphoma in the small intestine, but it is still in the "superficial" stage, not deeply invasive. We started her on Chlorambucil / Prednisolone 1mg/5mg/ml Oral Oil Suspension daily for first 30 days. If that goes well, likely down to 3x a week with 2mg.

 

[fionasmom]

Thank you for the update and for being proactive for your cat. Most cats tolerate chemotherapy much better than humans, so approach this hopefully.

 

[Margot Lane]

Can you point me to an online reseller for Rawz? Local vendors are like kennels, groomers, etc. I need a reliable source for any food. If not Rawz, is there another 2nd choice brand?

I have no answers, having just had this diagnosed for my 14 year old, but it is EXTREMELY comforting to hear everyone else’s responses. On pred, hungry all the time, poop lousy, loves rabbit, chicken with rice, venison, pumpkin, pomegranate. Scared of the upcoming chemo pills. Wondering if you or anyone has tried any herbal remedies with any success. Have been told this particular diagnosis among cats is increasing, at least here in the US and wondered if same for the UK, and if so why.

 

[fionasmom]

LGAL has definitely increased, or I should say the diagnosis of it, over the last several years. I don't have a reason but it may be the ability to find it more easily with modern diagnostics. However, I have found that it is often cited as a cause of intestinal conditions when no testing has been done....sort of a go-to suggestion.

Chelsea takes chlorambucil. Most animals, dogs and cats, tolerate chemo much easier than humans do and you will probably see the same side effects such as hair loss and vomiting. My dog, who is 15, has been on a chemotherapeutic pill for 6 years (not for lymphoma) and it has caused no side effects with the exception of the dosage has to be adjusted from time to time.

Many people on TCS have faced this, so you can get a lot of support here.

 

[daftcat75]

LGAL has definitely increased, or I should say the diagnosis of it, over the last several years. I don't have a reason but it may be the ability to find it more easily with modern diagnostics. However, I have found that it is often cited as a cause of intestinal conditions when no testing has been done....sort of a go-to suggestion.

Chelsea takes chlorambucil. Most animals, dogs and cats, tolerate chemo much easier than humans do and you will probably see the same side effects such as hair loss and vomiting. My dog, who is 15, has been on a chemotherapeutic pill for 6 years (not for lymphoma) and it has caused no side effects with the exception of the dosage has to be adjusted from time to time.

Many people on TCS have faced this, so you can get a lot of support here.

Correction here. I believe fionasmom meant to say:

Most animals, dogs and cats, tolerate chemo much easier than humans do and you will probably NOT see the same side effects such as hair loss and vomiting.

My Krista took chemo for several months. The only noticeable side-effect (if you can even call it that) was that she seemed to sleep more on dosing days. No effect on her appetite, no vomiting, and no hair loss.

 

[fionasmom]

Thank you daftcat75 . I absolutely did mean to put the word "not" in that sentence so I hope that I did not panic you Margot Lane .

 

[Margot Lane]

Thank you daftcat75 . I absolutely did mean to put the word "not" in that sentence so I hope that I did not panic you Margot Lane .

Oh absolutely! I got that. Thank you SOOO much. The main vets w/ whom I’m working recommend ZD both dry and wet, but just following your comments about no dry. He wolfs it down, hungry hungry all the time. Think we MIGHT just have turned a corner from watery poo to something excitingly firmer! This website is so helpful I cannot tell you: thank you.

 

[Margot Lane]

Thank goodness at least I persuaded my vet to get my boy off Z/D. She won’t let me do RAWZ but at least we’re back on home cooked chicken and rice which he loves, and has on it gained a pound and a half! Waiting for the chemo pills to arrive but meantime he is fiercely chowing down. We snuck outside together and he caught and quickly released a baby snake (bad smell?) and nibbled some grass. At least we can live in the moment with them, and it does a power of good to be in this community so thank you once again, all!

 

[daftcat75]

Thank goodness at least I persuaded my vet to get my boy off Z/D. She won’t let me do RAWZ but at least we’re back on home cooked chicken and rice which he loves, and has on it gained a pound and a half! Waiting for the chemo pills to arrive but meantime he is fiercely chowing down. We snuck outside together and he caught and quickly released a baby snake (bad smell?) and nibbled some grass. At least we can live in the moment with them, and it does a power of good to be in this community so thank you once again, all!

Why won't your vet let you feed Rawz? It's a gold standard for IBD/lymphoma/food allergies in my non-professional opinion.

Please consider Alnutrin with Calcium to balance the home cooked. Chicken and rice alone is not sufficient nutrition. It's lacking in calcium for one thing. Calcium is used in many physiological processes. If the cat isn't getting enough calcium from her diet (and she won't from unsupplemented chicken and rice), her body will make up the difference from her teeth and bones.

A Guide To A Balanced, Homemade Cat Food - Alnutrin Supplements

You will also need to add a small amount of liver to the chicken and rice. But this is easier than adding in all the supplements separately that chicken and rice is missing. You can always add a little fish oil or salmon oil to the recipe if your diva isn't thrilled about the liver addition. The Alnutrin itself seems to be flavor-agnostic. Krista liked Alnutrin with whatever meat we were using.

 

[Margot Lane]

Why won't your vet let you feed Rawz? It's a gold standard for IBD/lymphoma/food allergies in my non-professional opinion.

Please consider Alnutrin with Calcium to balance the home cooked. Chicken and rice alone is not sufficient nutrition. It's lacking in calcium for one thing. Calcium is used in many physiological processes. If the cat isn't getting enough calcium from her diet (and she won't from unsupplemented chicken and rice), her body will make up the difference from her teeth and bones.

A Guide To A Balanced, Homemade Cat Food - Alnutrin Supplements

You will also need to add a small amount of liver to the chicken and rice. But this is easier than adding in all the supplements separately that chicken and rice is missing. You can always add a little fish oil or salmon oil to the recipe if your diva isn't thrilled about the liver addition. The Alnutrin itself seems to be flavor-agnostic. Krista liked Alnutrin with whatever meat we were using.

I snuck him a multivitamin which had calcium and he snarfed it. I think the vet probably needs to follow the rules of the VCA clinic she works for and also we haven’t yet done any baseline bloodwork yet so probably wants to keep it simple, to have something to go off if. Not many vets near my tiny town & this one is a 2 hour drive each way. Thank you will keep yourself advice in mind moving forward.

 

[t c c]

A couple years ago, my Smokey Kitty finally sadly passed at 17 yo Six years prior to her passing she had developed a large marble-shaped lump between her eyes. I woke up one morning just to find she was bleeding behind her eyes and from her mouth and rushed her to ER Vet ran all types of tests and came to diagnosis of feline lymphoma. Chemo and radiation therapy were recommended. Smokey was tiny and fragile so we turned it down, however, and came home to "research". We found online reputable site and began using turmeric/curcumin with piperine gelcaps, at first twice a day, and once bump between kitty's eyes "dissolved", continued giving it to her once a day the remainder of her six years with us. Vet had given her two months without treatment and six months IF chemo and radiation therapy had begun. So glad we did the research, this alternative med worked for Smokey, and got to spend an additional six years with kitty.

How long did it take to "dissolve" the bump?

 

[ElevenFurbabies]

Amazingly it took less than a week (about 5-days and lump between Smokey's eyes completely dissolved). BTW Smokey's "son",
Tommie, also wound up with lymphoma only in his GI where we didn't realize until late in his diagnosis. However, on the 500mg Turmeric with 2.5mg piperine ratio Tommie lived an additional 2-years whereas Smokey's diagnosis was located primarily in naso-pharynx and she lived an additional 6-years. If you cannot find exact ratio purchasing empty gelcaps and filling like I did is an option.The treatment worked so well for Smokey minus any negative effects that we didn't even bother taking her son to the vet before starting his treatment. I'd read that sometimes when the cancer is located within GI kitty will sometimes suffer and drag hind legs where scooting along may become the norm. Fortunately despite fact Tommie did develop some nasty infections in his skin, primarily hind legs, he never lost his mobility to get around. In addition to giving the Turmeric with Piperine, we would treat him with amoxicillin when he wound up with bouts of infection. You can google pet - per pound amount of med to give. Best to you and your beloved furbaby. P.S. I shop online at Swanson, Puritan's Pride, and once in awhile Walmart for my babies.

 

[brocklanders]

Hello! New here. 1st post.I have 13 y.o. female DSH. We took her to new vet recently (a feline specialist only) here in north Atlanta for Senior Wellness. She had lost 1.5lbs. since July 2019 (now 13.8lbs). She has occasional vomiting which had increased recently. Labs looked good except elevated liver markers. Plan was to check them again 6 weeks. Meantime, my cat started having acute vomiting. Took her in. They gave her fluids, meds for pain and nausea, etc. Sent out for specialized blood work, including Feline GI Lymphoma Panel which came back at 7.7 out of 10 as consistent with small cell lymphoma. They did ultrasound which showed diffuse jejunal and ileal thickening. R/o IBD vs lymphoma. Vet now suggests surgical biopsy -- doesn't feel comfortable giving chlorambucil without it. Our cat is eating, going to bathroom and has only vomited twice in 6 weeks. Overall, pretty healthy. Torn as to what to do. Surgery (even with a very experienced specialist vet) is risky. Choices: 1) Surgical biopsy to confirm, then treat; 2) Treat as IBD, i.e. prednisolone.

*UPDATE (07/05/2023):
Our Gracie is 22 months post diagnosis. Overall, she has done well. Her meds were tweaked twice. She is on .5 Chlorambucil every 4 days and Prednisolone .25ml daily. She has had a couple of flares requiring some urgent care like fluids, pain meds, etc. Her weight is stable at about 15.5 to 16 lbs. She has very early CKD and most recently hyperthyroidism. We opted for I-131 because she is already on a lot of meds and didn't want to give another twice a day. We are 5 weeks post treatment. F/u bloodwork is in a couple of months.

Gracie had a bad IBD flare a couple days ago. Worst one yet. Vomiting and severe straining with some diarrhea. We had to take her to urgent care. Fluids, pain meds and diarrhea meds given. Discharged. Later pooped large hard stools. Very weak, wouldn't eat/drink. We finger feed her chicked baby food and gave her water via syringe. She improved yesterday. Urgent care vet suggested she might not be in remission anymore.

She has f/u ultrasound and evaluation tomorrow.