Mct Is Back.

[dogbesotted]

We had great news this evening, the specialist called with her lab results - and the tumour is very low grade, even more surprisingly they have now said they think they got it all. Definitely no chemo, maybe no radium either. She goes back on Friday for patch removal and a dressing change so we will know next steps for sure then. We will just have to watch her very closely from here on and test any lumps. We are just so relieved. I have visions of her being carted to the vet for every future mozzie bite though. Still talking to the herbalist though to see what they suggest.

thrilled with the news. I became quite lump phobic after Lucindas initial surgery..in fact I will admit to rushing her into the vet when i found another lump on her sternum near the site of the first and as clean margins were not achieved PANIC!!!!!!!! it was a nipple :o :o (not in expected position due to previous surgery )

H

[coogie]

Pretty sure we will be the same H, we went yesterday - no chemo or radium. Another wound check next week and then monthly check ups for the next six months to do bloods and check her skin and that joint in particular for recurrence. So relieved and grateful.

[VizslaMomma]

Pretty sure we will be the same H, we went yesterday - no chemo or radium. Another wound check next week and then monthly check ups for the next six months to do bloods and check her skin and that joint in particular for recurrence. So relieved and grateful.

So happy for you both.

[coogie]

So six months down the track and I spent yesterday afternoon back at the oncologist, Issy's MCT is back, same leg, looks like the same location although maybe fractionally higher up. She is having surgery again on Tuesday and once we have a grading for this tumour we will decide on next steps. One option is radiation, just wondered if anyone here has had any experience of it? Things I am wondering are:

Was the burn significant?

Did it take a long time to heal?

Did the tumour return, and if so how long after the radiation?

If you had chemo as well, did you find other tumours elsewhere after the chemo and did your dog have any bad reactions to the chemo?

I know people say that it does not affect dogs like humans but I was wondering about things like nausea, lethargy etc.

Thanks in advance for any information.

[~Anne~]

Boof has battled both MCTs and fribrosarcoma over the last 5-6 years and Olivia has just had her first MCT diagnoses. She had 3 low grades removed with clear margins last week.

Boof has had 6 MCTs in all if I am recalling it correctly. He currently has several suspected MCTs but, given he is now terminal anyway (the fibrosarcoma got him instead) we are not removing them or even testing them.

He had all grade 1 MCTs and one grade 2. He underwent surgery for each on and two surgeries for the grade 2 as they didn't get clear margins. We never followed up with chemo as his specialist believed it wouldn't do anything as he had no evidence of any tumours once they were surgically removed.

Our issue was that they just kept coming. I trust that won't be what happens with Olivia.

Anyway to cut a long story short, if I had his time over again I am not sure I would have put him through so much surgery. Low grade MCTs are slow growing, don't metastasise and are not invasive. We would have saved this little dog a lot of stress had we left them as he would have died of old age before they killed him.

I guess what I'm saying is that MCTs are not the end of the world unless they are high grade.

I've heard a lot of info on, but not experienced, a dog on chemo. I understand they do not get sick like humans do. I think (but I'm not 100% convinced) I'd rather try the chemo option instead of surgery if I could go back a number of years. I'm contemplating trying Olivia on chemo if any further tumours appear.

As much as Boof loves his life, he doesn't think of death and it is me who wants him to live for a long time.

[coogie]

Thanks so much Anne,

I agree re the MCTs if they are low grade, OH and I have been talking and I think if it comes back in the same place a third time we won't cut her again. It is on her carpus and the margins are always going to be, well marginal I guess is the only word. There simply isn't enough skin/flesh there to take wide areas. The only place a Shar Pei doesn't have more than enough skin and rolls to spare . It is just not a great sign that it is back in just six months. She is only rising five, but has had a number of surgeries for her back end issues - so can't afford for her front end to be sore/lame as well.

We will know more next week once we get the grading back. They seemed to be leaning towards radiation over chemo because it is more targeted and the tumour is in the same spot. I just worry about the burning aspect with their mucin issues, but can't find anyone else yet who has had the radiation. I will probably drive them mad with questions.

I was saying to someone who called this morning to commiserate that it is all about us wanting to find the "cure", Issy is oblivious, much more interested in chivvying us to get her eggs ready and take her to hydrotherapy this morning. I just don't want her to be in a lot of pain if it won't make any difference in the end.

[coogie]

Issy will start her final week of radiation next week, her carpal pad has started to slough off and she has a visible lesion from the burn now. She is 15 doses into an 18 dose protocol, she has just started this week on meloxicam and prophylactic antibiotics. We have some silver burn cream to come as well.

I was surprised at how long it took for the burn to appear but apparently it will get worse after the final dose. Other than the burn she has tolerated the treatment pretty well, the part that I was worried about, the anaesthetics don't seem to have bothered her much up to this point.

Just a waiting game now to see if it has had the desired effect,