Unsure of what to do after tumor diagnosis

[cat princesses]

Hi Everyone
My girl is aprox 16 years old. She is a well managed diabetic. She has been loosing weight recently and when I took her in 2 months ago for a full check up and blood work they said she was in the early stages of kidney disease. I have had a previous cat with CKD and they started her on sub q fluids at home 2x per week and a kidney supplement. She has been peeing outside the litter box so we took her in yesterday. I requested that they x ray her kidneys so we could have a baseline for size. They found something on x ray they were concerned about and did an ultrasound and said there is a large tumor in her abdomen. We are heartbroken. I was only 1/2 listening while the vet was talking on the phone because I burst into tears right away. I recall she said it's large in size, and something about if they attempted to do anything with it that it would bleed out or something. I have a call in and they will call me tomorrow so I can write things down. Currently she is eating and drinking and still wants to be brushed - we are very confused. The vet didn't think she would make it 1 month. I have always gone by if they are eating, and drinking that it's not time to say goodbye. I was reading about tumors rupturing and I did ask that question today and they emailed back and said they asked the vet and she said that was a possibility. I could never forgive myself if I left this too long and something like that happened. Is it still best to go with as long as she is eating and drinking to just continue to keep loving her? I am afraid of making the decision too early.
Can't stop crying. I feel so bad for my husband, he is incredibly close with her and he's taking this hard as well.

 

[fionasmom]

I am so sorry that you are facing this. You have clearly taken excellent care of your girl for all these years and have been very proactive with her health.

Of course, this was a huge shock. When you talk to the vet, do as you said, and try to have something to take notes. It will also be helpful to have a list of questions for them. It might be helpful to actually speak to the vet or ask for a longer email which answers your questions, as opposed to the vet tech asks the vet and the vet replies and then tell you.

Where is the tumor?
What kind of tumor is it, if possible?
Are there any other diagnostics which could be done to pinpoint what is going on?
What is the danger of a procedure? Are there options for a procedure which is less risky?
Why does the vet suspect it will rupture?
What is she basing the one month window on?
Is the vet recommending euthanasia? If so, when?

These could end up being one big question depending on the answer to the first couple.

Your vet is probably very competent and the questions, along with anything else you can think of, are not meant to throw her on the defensive. I just think that you need a lot of solid answers, or as many as she can give so that you can make an informed decision about care and how to proceed.

Tumors which can rupture, like hemangiosarcomas ( although I am not sure that is what your cat has) are serious and often fatal. Certainly, it is a good sign that your cat is still eating and drinking.

You need to get some answers from your vet and then you can make a decision as to what to do next.

 

[cat princesses]

I am so sorry that you are facing this. You have clearly taken excellent care of your girl for all these years and have been very proactive with her health.

Of course, this was a huge shock. When you talk to the vet, do as you said, and try to have something to take notes. It will also be helpful to have a list of questions for them. It might be helpful to actually speak to the vet or ask for a longer email which answers your questions, as opposed to the vet tech asks the vet and the vet replies and then tell you.

Where is the tumor?
What kind of tumor is it, if possible?
Are there any other diagnostics which could be done to pinpoint what is going on?
What is the danger of a procedure? Are there options for a procedure which is less risky?
Why does the vet suspect it will rupture?
What is she basing the one month window on?
Is the vet recommending euthanasia? If so, when?

These could end up being one big question depending on the answer to the first couple.

Your vet is probably very competent and the questions, along with anything else you can think of, are not meant to throw her on the defensive. I just think that you need a lot of solid answers, or as many as she can give so that you can make an informed decision about care and how to proceed.

Tumors which can rupture, like hemangiosarcomas ( although I am not sure that is what your cat has) are serious and often fatal. Certainly, it is a good sign that your cat is still eating and drinking.

You need to get some answers from your vet and then you can make a decision as to what to do next.

Thank you so much! I m going to write down what you said and ask some of these questions tomorrow

 

[cat princesses]

I am so sorry that you are facing this. You have clearly taken excellent care of your girl for all these years and have been very proactive with her health.

Of course, this was a huge shock. When you talk to the vet, do as you said, and try to have something to take notes. It will also be helpful to have a list of questions for them. It might be helpful to actually speak to the vet or ask for a longer email which answers your questions, as opposed to the vet tech asks the vet and the vet replies and then tell you.

Where is the tumor?
What kind of tumor is it, if possible?
Are there any other diagnostics which could be done to pinpoint what is going on?
What is the danger of a procedure? Are there options for a procedure which is less risky?
Why does the vet suspect it will rupture?
What is she basing the one month window on?
Is the vet recommending euthanasia? If so, when?

These could end up being one big question depending on the answer to the first couple.

Your vet is probably very competent and the questions, along with anything else you can think of, are not meant to throw her on the defensive. I just think that you need a lot of solid answers, or as many as she can give so that you can make an informed decision about care and how to proceed.

Tumors which can rupture, like hemangiosarcomas ( although I am not sure that is what your cat has) are serious and often fatal. Certainly, it is a good sign that your cat is still eating and drinking.

You need to get some answers from your vet and then you can make a decision as to what to do next.

I spoke to the vet. I re confirmed and she said the tumor is quite large, aprox size of my fist, and it's central abdomen amoungst her intestines but not in the intestines if that makes sense. She said it's fiberous and likely has adhesions. She said I could seek out a surgery consult at the specialty center. That would involve numerous views to be taken but she said typically when she has referred out similar cases they are inoperable. Also, she is older and a full abdominal surgery would be painful and I don't think there is much benefit at this point.

I asked about the tumor rupturing and she said she hasn't seen that happen so thought it was a lower risk.

I asked about pain management and she didn't think she was experiencing pain when she saw her at the clinic
As for timeline - we just don't know. Right now she is eating, drinking and grooming and doing her usual things - they said eventually she could get more fluid in her belly and that will make her feel worse and eventually stop eating. She said it could be a month, two months, six months we just don't now so this will be a day by day monitoring. She will let us know when it's time to go to momma cat. Until then, we will just continue with her routine and keep her as happy and comfortable as possible.

 

[FeebysOwner]

I asked about the tumor rupturing and she said she hasn't seen that happen so thought it was a lower risk...As for timeline - we just don't know. Right now she is eating, drinking and grooming and doing her usual things - they said eventually she could get more fluid in her belly and that will make her feel worse and eventually stop eating.

What is her name? Bless her and you! I have a cat around her age (Feeby, 16+ yo) and regardless of their health, you just know that time is limited. I am glad to hear that rupturing is a lower risk than you originally were concerned about. It is also heartening to hear that she is still doing pretty well!

Even if she were to collect fluid in her belly, that can be easily drained - just to give you more time if you need it to be with her and her with you, as long as it yields positive results. Not the same illness, but Tawny (RIP) who was 15 when he was diagnosed with FIP, had his belly drained 3 times - it perked him up, allowed him to eat & feel better, and enabled us to have more time to deal with the inevitable. Just consider it at least once to see if it helps and gives you any extra time you and she might need.

 

[fionasmom]

I am also very relieved that rupturing seems to be off the table. Your vet did give you some precise information which is very helpful and to her credit. Draining the fluid is a possibility, so don't discount that. You can consult at the surgery center, but I understand your hesitancy to do that. My cat vet does not do surgery on older cats...those entering the upper teen years as she says it is too much of a risk. Please try to enjoy every day with your girl and try to be upbeat for her, which is very hard. We are here if you need to talk.

 

[bear]

This site encourages posting of images.
If the number of images you have of your girl are limited I would encourage taking a couple more.
You mentioned she has a nice relationship with your husband. Hopefully, you will see opportunities come up when they are together to create a couple more. Consider asking him to move her face up closer to his.
When taking images of just her, getting on a level that is even with her can help.
Possibly up on a desk, or drop to her level on the floor.
Natural light that comes from a window or glass door can help.

Thank you for taking good care of your girl. I wish you more happy days with your girl.

 

[cat princesses]

What is her name? Bless her and you! I have a cat around her age (Feeby, 16+ yo) and regardless of their health, you just know that time is limited. I am glad to hear that rupturing is a lower risk than you originally were concerned about. It is also heartening to hear that she is still doing pretty well!

Even if she were to collect fluid in her belly, that can be easily drained - just to give you more time if you need it to be with her and her with you, as long as it yields positive results. Not the same illness, but Tawny (RIP) who was 15 when he was diagnosed with FIP, had his belly drained 3 times - it perked him up, allowed him to eat & feel better, and enabled us to have more time to deal with the inevitable. Just consider it at least once to see if it helps and gives you any extra time you and she might need.

I can ask. The vet didn’t mention anything about draining things so I don’t know if that’s an option I will ask.

 

[cat princesses]

Just wanted to post an update so far everything is as normal as we can make it for her. She is still interested in eating and drinking and we are spending as much time with her as we can. I have been doing some extra special things with her like special window time to watch birds though she doesn’t stay for long. I got some freeze dried white fish which is really smelly I am crumbling that on wet food and that seems to be encouraging her to eat. Each day is a blessing and we are taking pictures as well though I have always been a huge picture taker of both kitties. I asked again if there was anything else we could do and they said we would have to take her to the specialty center and they would have to use a guided ultra sound to take a tissue sample to determine the exact cancer. They said whatever it is it’s not lymphoma had surgery isn’t something we would put her thru so it’s kinda not an option. I’m not sure about draining if anything fluid they said it’s dangerous to do anything because it could cause severe internal bleeding if they tried. It’s hard because for how she’s still bright and alert. I am hopeful things stay the same or we have a miracle.