Mr Meow is home, pictures added on post #80

[jenluckenbach]

Jennie, Mr Meow saw Dr Hodges when he has his ultrasound. He is the vet who wanted to do te endoscopy.

Why would no one (3 vets saw him) offer a fine needle biopsy? It was never mentioned. This makes me wonder if it is not an option in his case?

This is all very confusing and stressful. Thank you for all your help.

[Craftlady]

Jennie, Mr Meow saw Dr Hodges when he has his ultrasound. He is the vet who wanted to do te endoscopy.

Why would no one (3 vets saw him) offer a fine needle biopsy? It was never mentioned. This makes me wonder if it is not an option in his case?

This is all very confusing and stressful. Thank you for all your help.

I think most general vet's probably dont do needle biopsy's. It wasnt until we went to specialist did they do one for Thumper. It's pretty quick and painless (they numb the area). The specium was sent to California for analysis.
It's not a cheap procedure.

[Medusa]

I think most general vet's probably dont do needle biopsy's. It wasnt until we went to specialist did they do one for Thumper. It's pretty quick and painless (they numb the area). The specium was sent to California for analysis.
It's not a cheap procedure.

My Creamsicle had a needle biopsy done when she first got the skin allergy because my vet thought she may have skin cancer. I don't recall it being that expensive, though I can check my records to be sure. If it's available to you, you may want to give it a try.

[Catty1]

I wonder if One by One would cover a needle biopsy?

Is an endoscopy terribly invasive? I am not sure what it is...

[Emeraldgreen]

A fine needle aspiration usually does not require any local or anything. They just insert a syringe and draw out a small sampling of fluid if there is any to be drawn out and then they squirt it out onto a glass slide and have a look at it under a microscope right there in the clinic. It only costs about 30.00 and it is rather basic but the vet can tell by the fluid drawn out if it is a fat deposit or if it is an abscess. If it is neither of those two, then the vet would probably suggest further testing. It's just a way of ruling out two less serious conditions before proceeding with other tests. My vet said that when the needle is put into the lump, they don't appear to feel much of anything in comparison to if a needle was inserted into a normal (unlumpy) area where they would feel it.

[Kirsten]

Why would no one (3 vets saw him) offer a fine needle biopsy? It was never mentioned. This makes me wonder if it is not an option in his case?

It could be that they did not mention it because the tumor is so deep in his abdomen. But honestly, even if it wasn't, I wouldn't do it. I heard too many stories of tumors "exploding" right after a biopsy, meaning they grow fast after the contact with oxygen.

But it's a tough question indeed. If Mr. Meow was 10 years older, I'd say enjoy the time you have, he's doing well, and it could still be more time than you're expecting (we were told to prepare to lose Rocky almost two years ago, on Christmas 2005, and now he lived till last week with his abdominal cancer).

But on the other hand, Mr. Meow is still so young... I really wouldn't know what to do. When I found the lump in Luna's shoulder last year, I decided against the surgery, just because I didn't want to put her through all that as she was just recovering from a bad episode of struvite crystals, and she really had enough. But there's a big chance that it's no cancer what Luna has. In Mr. Meow's case, you're pretty sure what it is...

It's such a tough decision. You know he deserves a chance, and I can understand your fear that they may find a situation worse than expected when they open him (I too saw many vet ER shows on tv lately ).

What does your heart tell you?

Kirsten