Latest Update 12-9-09 Storm's Been Diagnosed & Sunny's Biopsy Results

[Moesha]

My vet gave Morgan a pain medicine called Torb or something like that after his tumor was removed. It is a narcotic. Then when he was still having trouble eating, they gave him some Metacam, even though it isn't usually given to cats due to other side effects, like the liver problems. We tried it with Morgan because we were dealing with a cancer patient, and thought that the benefits outweighed the possible risks at that point.

[Medusa]

My vet gave Morgan a pain medicine called Torb or something like that after his tumor was removed. It is a narcotic. Then when he was still having trouble eating, they gave him some Metacam, even though it isn't usually given to cats due to other side effects, like the liver problems. We tried it with Morgan because we were dealing with a cancer patient, and thought that the benefits outweighed the possible risks at that point.

Yes, my Puddy was on that drug; it's called Torbutrol and it's very effective for pain management but it did make her quite uncoordinated and out of it. She had to be isolated b/c she wasn't allowed to be near stairs or in any danger of falling and getting hurt.

[jennielynn1970]

Oh Tracey, I'm so sorry to be reading all of this now. I hardly ever venture over to the health section (it gets me all teary eyed at work), but I wish I would have seen this earlier.

I'll be keeping you, Storm, and especially Sunny, in my thoughts and prayers. I hope that everything will work out ok for Sunny, that poor sweet boy.

Hugs to you and all your fur kids.

[smokey the elder]

I googled feline cancer and there were some links about treatment (clinical trials) of oral squamous cell carcinoma. For example there is research at the University of Pennsylvania vet school: http://www.vet.upenn.edu/

[wolf_Q]

I'm very sorry to hear this. I hope you will have as much time as possible with Sunny. Sending good vibes to Sunny, Storm, and you. {{HUGS}}

[katladyd]

I am sending up prayers for all of you. I would try the transfer factor, it sure couldn't hurt and there have been some amazing results from it. Hang in there, we all care very much!

[krazyaboutkatz]

Thanks everyone. Sunny's having a good day today. He was very hungry this morning and I'll be feeding him some more canned food in a few minutes. Pearl has taken over the howling at night routine and it's driving me crazy. She's also still being very nasty towards Sunny. Ziggy is being a bit nicer towards him today.

I also got some very good news from my vet about Storm's prognosis. I asked her a few questions about the pred and Folic Acid supplements and this is what her response was:

We will carefully wean Storm off of the pred over a period of months. He may need some level of pred life long, but we will attempt to wean it down to the lowest effective dose.


I usually give the folic acid for 6 weeks and try to get the underlying disorder under control (with the pred). Hopefully by then he will be stabilized, which means his intestine is working normally again, which theoretically means he does not need to be supplemented further because his intestine can absorb it normally again. So, if he is not vomting and acting normal in 6 weeks, we may just stop and not necessairaly retest. We will see how it goes.

Hopefully his intestine will start working normally again and he won't vomit any more. So far so good but he's a mighty hungry boy these days.

[Barbara]

Good to hear about Storm. I am sorry to hear that Pearl is aggressive towards Sunny I must admit- this is how I could have learned earlier that something was wrong with Tigris. Tigris had always been bullying Filou (not all the time, but once in a while) and some weeks before we noticed Tigris was sick I was surprised to see that Filou chased him and pounced on him.
These kitties have not invented the idea of pity- they rather do not want a sick member of the gang around
But it's good to hear that Sunny eats.

[krazyaboutkatz]

Good to hear about Storm. I am sorry to hear that Pearl is aggressive towards Sunny I must admit- this is how I could have learned earlier that something was wrong with Tigris. Tigris had always been bullying Filou (not all the time, but once in a while) and some weeks before we noticed Tigris was sick I was surprised to see that Filou chased him and pounced on him.
These kitties have not invented the idea of pity- they rather do not want a sick member of the gang around
But it's good to hear that Sunny eats.

Thanks Barbara. Storm had a bit of a relapse on Fri. night because I had stopped giving him 5mg of pepcid at night since my vet told me to stop. Now he's back on the pepcid for at least 4 weeks and he's doing well. He licked Ziggy's head this morning so I thought that they were finally being friendly again. Then a bit later Storm's chasing her again and making her growl and hiss.

Sunny's doing great and has even started howling again in the hall way and lining his mice up for some one to play with him. He's also still eating very well. He even jumped up on his 7' cat tree yesterday. If I didn't know any better I wouldn't think that there was anything wrong with him. I hope that he can continue like this for quite a while.

Pearl is being a bit nicer towards Sunny but she can be nasty towards all of the cats at times. She may be little but she can be very aggressive and bossy. Then she can also be very loving and nuturing. I think she's aware that Sunny is feeling better so she's not picking on him as much.

I'm still waiting for my vet to call me. She said that she'd try to call me some time before 12pm so hopefully she'll call soon. She only works until 5pm. I'll update you later about things. Thanks again for all of the emotional support.

[Catty1]

Are you going to give the Transfer Factor a try, hon?

HUGS to Storm, I hope he'll be back on top of things, and good to hear that Sunny is yelling!

[Catlady711]

Sorry to hear the results came back cancerous. Sending good thoughts for you and Storm.

[krazyaboutkatz]

Are you going to give the Transfer Factor a try, hon?

HUGS to Storm, I hope he'll be back on top of things, and good to hear that Sunny is yelling!

No, I've decided not to. I've heard that it tastes very nasty and I don't want to force this on him. I also remember that Emeraldgreen's cat Tiger also had this form of cancer and she tried this on him without any luck. I researched many holistic sites and nothing will cure this cancer or any cancer. It only prolongs the inevitable.

Sorry to hear the results came back cancerous. Sending good thoughts for you and Storm.

Thanks Catlady711.

My vet called me a little while ago. She's been so busy today and she had to do 2 surgeries. She told me that there's not much that can be done with this type of cancer. Surgery isn't recommended because they can't get clean margins so it just comes back. She could refer me to an oncologist to possibly put Sunny through radiation or chemotherapy but this has no guarantee of working and it's very expensive. I'm already in a lot of debt so I just can't afford this kind of treatment.

I've decided to just do nothing at this point except to enjoy my Sunny boy and cherish every momemt that I have with him. I'll keep my vet updated monthly about him and when he needs some pain meds then I'll give them to him. My vet said that I may have 3-5 months left with him. She also said that his kidney values are on the high normal side. This is why I don't want to use any pain meds that will attack his kidneys because then I'd have much less time with him. We can use pain patches or the Buprenex that I was giving him after his dental. I hope that you don't think that I'm a bad cat meowmie by making this decision. Thanks again for all of the emotional support.

[Catty1]

Re: the Transfer Factor...Emeraldgreen's cat definitely did not like the taste, and took very little of it, which is a factor. EG told me later that the vets did believe what he did take gave him more time.

illustr8r's Haggis took it very well and was cancer-free at the last test.

Just a thought - if Moesha has just a few caps, why not see if Sunny will take it? It will cost you nothing to find out.

Here's a link direct to the study smokey the elder was talking about. Perhaps there is a similar study in CA? They might know.

http://research.vet.upenn.edu/Clinic...Carcinoma.aspx

Feline Oral Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Study Investigating New Drug Safety and Effects on Feline Oral Squamous Cell Carinoma (SCC)
Principal Investigator: John Lewis, VMD, FAVD, Dipl. AVDC

Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is the most common oral cancer in cats and people. In cats, it is a devastating disease with a median survival time of approximately 60 days. Penn Vet recently received a generous gift in memory of "Bud", a cat affected by maxillary SCC, with the establishment of the Squamous Cell Carcinoma Research Fund.
With this fund, the Matthew J. Ryan Veterinary Hospital Dentistry and Oral Surgery service is currently recruiting cats diagnosed with oral squamous cell carcinoma to be included in a new study evaluating the toxicity and efficacy of two polyamine inhibitor drugs, 2-Difluoromethylornithine (DFMO) and MQT 1569.

Polyamines are compounds found in cells that play a role in cell replication and growth. Polyamines are often elevated in tumor cells. By administering the two drugs, DFMO and MQT 1569, and preventing polyamines from working, the study hopes to find that tumor growth is delayed or halted.
Eligibility:

* your cat must have been diagnosed with oral squamous cell carcinoma with a biopsy
* you have opted not to have surgery performed to remove the tumor or pursue other chemotherapy or radiation treatment, either by your veterinarian’s advice or your own choice
* if your cat previously had surgery to remove a squamous cell carcinoma and the cancer has recurred, he or she is still eligible
* your cat must have a reasonably good appetite and you must be willing and able to give oral liquid medication three times per day

Benefits to enrolling your cat in this study include a physical exam at each visit; blood work including complete blood count, chemistry screen, and thyroid level; urinalysis; chest x-rays; dental x-rays; a CT-scan of the head; lymph node aspirates and repeat tumor biopsies at no charge. You will also be supplied with the investigational medications at no charge.

You must be able to bring your cat to MJR-VHUP for the initial visit, a follow-up visit two weeks later and the final visit one month from the initial visit.

If you are interested in learning more about this study, please contact the Veterinary Clinical Investigations Center at 215-573-0302 or [email protected]

[Moesha]

I absolutely don't think you are a bad cat meowmie! I think you've weighed all the factors involved and are doing the very best that you can for Sunny. Each and every case is unique. Only you know all the different factors and none of us are in any position to judge you for whatever decision you make. (Not that I feel that anyone has judged you at all!) I know it was so frustrating for me trying to get Morgan to eat the Transfer Factor, and it had no positive results in my case. I'm very glad for those that it has worked for.
KAK and I discussed it, and I'm sending the unused Transfer Factor to a friend of mine in North Carolina. She found out last week that her 3 year old Basset Hound has lymphoma. He's going to go through treatments that have an 80% chance of remission, but they still don't think he'll have more than a couple of years. So in addition to the the treatment, she's going to try the Transfer Factor and hopefully get more time with her Wilson.

[Catty1]

Long Beach Hospital

This is what they use for Squamous Cell Carcinoma

We routinely perform this surgery using the carbon dioxide laser. The significant advantages are minimal bleeding during the surgery, negligible post operative pain, and no need to put sutures in for some cases. This short QuickTime movie below shows the initial incision with the laser, and just prior to suturing- note the lack of blood. Make sure you have QuickTime from apple.com on your machine and double click the box below.

A new and promising treatment for SCC is called Photo Dynamic Therapy. It involves the use of a laser beam to selectively destroy cancerous tissue only. An injection of photosensitive chemical is given to a pet that has SCC. The only cells that absorb this chemical are the cancerous ones. It is only these cells that are destroyed by the laser, the laser beam harmlessly passes through the normal cells that do not absorb the photosensitive chemical. If one of our doctors feels that this therapy is appropriate, they will let you know. It is considered experimental therapy, and is performed locally only at the Beckman Laser Institute at the University of California at Irvine, on a referral basis only.

Their website is kinda basic, but here is the contact info:
Long Beach Animal Hospital
3816 E. Anaheim St.
Long Beach, CA 90804
(562) 434-9966
Fax (562) 597-4226

We are open M-TH 7:30 AM to 9 PM
Friday 7:30 AM to 8 PM
Saturday 8 AM to 6 PM
Sunday 10 AM to 6 PM

http://lbah.com/patients.html Cute pics of people and their pet patients!

You know your friends here would do some fund-raising. If you don't want a second opinion, that is cool. But I did some searching and found this.

They have pictures of before and after surgery that are not gross or bloody at all...but they could upset a sensitive constitution.

{{{hugs}}}