Very bad news for Oliver

[smokey the elder]

I'm so sorry to hear this. Our furry friends have been taking it on the chin lately.

[emily_the_spoiled]

We have an appointment with the dental specialist on Thursday. They will try to remove as much of the tumour as possible, but I will have to see what other treatment options are available. From what I read chemotherapy doesn't effect this type of cancer but radiation may buy a little more time. After Thursday I am going to have to make some decisions, but for now Oliver is doing fine and I am giving him anything he wants. All the literature says it is only a matter of months once the diagnosis is made

[emily_the_spoiled]

So Oliver had his surgery yesterday. The tumour had not progressed into the bone, which is good. But it was located close to his back tooth (where the jaws join). They removed the tumour and a significant amount of soft tissue and bone, which have been sent out for biopsy. They rebuilt the area from the surrounding muscle. But because of where they took material from they put in a feeding tube in case he didn't eat. He is now home on a Fentanyl patch (strong narcotic). But he is following me around like a dog which is something he never does. I am trying to give him multiple small meals throughout the day because he is still learning how to eat. But he looks in really rough shape right now.

I might have bought another year, but we still need to go to the radiation oncologist to see if that would be a worthwhile treatment. Unfortunately chemotherapy doesn't do much for this type of cancer, so it is highly until likely that we will go that route.

I just hope that I made the right decision to go down this path...

[Karen]

Aww, hopefully he won't need additional radiation, and the borders of what they took are clear of cancer.

[Catty1]

It sounds like the surgeons did a wonderful job with such an invasive surgery. Hopefully the biopsy results will indicate where to go on the radiation.

As a medical professional once told me, "I am the expert. You are the boss."

Hugs and prayers going out to you and dear Oliver.

[emily_the_spoiled]

Thank you. The surgeon feels they got clean edges unfortunately we think this is a particularly aggressive form of this type of cancer so they are not sure how much time we were able to get.

If you ever think twice about getting a dental cleaning because of the cost DON'T. We found this cancer only because he went in for a dental cleaning. Otherwise there would have been no signs or symptoms until it would have been too late to do anything.

[Pinot's Mom]

Cheryl, I'm very sorry about Oliver's diagnosis, but I hope the treatment is a success. I lost my Jamara to this cancer. Prayers and {{{Hugs}}}to you both.