# 14 Year Old With Stage 4 Lymphoma. HELP



## Dixie's Mum (Jul 22, 2010)

Hi there,

I've just found out my 14 year old Yorkie-poo has very late stage Lymphoma. It's really bad as it has spread throughout her body including her organs, especially her lungs. She has very fast laboured breathing and I really don't know what to do.

The vet has recommended chemo or prednisone as our treatment options and I'm not really sure of either. She still appreciates love and snuggles, is interested in eating cooked meat and treats, and likes going outside to smell the environment so I don't think she's quite ready to be put down. 

I guess I'm just wondering if she has any chance of having success if put on either chemo or prednisone, or are we just too late? 

Also, if she gets put on the prednisone will it help her ability to breathe?

Any advice you have is greatly appreciated. At the moment I'm feeling overwhelmed and very sad that my very best friend and my baby may not have much time left, and is uncomfortable.

Thank you so much.


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## darkstar2002 (Jul 22, 2010)

If she is still having a decent quality of life then exploring treatments would likely be the best route to go... does the vet believe that chemo will be effective at treating the cancer? If not, then it will likely just trade quality of life for quantity. If she is terminal, then prednisone might be the best route IMO, it does have some side effects but not as bad as chemo. Either way, if there is a chance of beating this, you have to act quick.


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## Inga (Jun 16, 2007)

I am so sorry to hear this. Cancer is a horrible horrible disease. (I know from experience.) I can't answer as to what you should do but I will tell you that treatments can be very very hard also. I think quality of life is so much more important then quantity. If the treatments do not have a huge chance of a cure and are difficult for her to endure, I personally wouldn't put my dog through them. Especially a dog that is in advanced age. Again, I am so sorry for your sad news.


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## agility collie mom (Jan 26, 2008)

Inga said:


> I am so sorry to hear this. Cancer is a horrible horrible disease. (I know from experience.) I can't answer as to what you should do but I will tell you that treatments can be very very hard also. I think quality of life is so much more important then quantity. If the treatments do not have a huge chance of a cure and are difficult for her to endure, I personally wouldn't put my dog through them. Especially a dog that is in advanced age. Again, I am so sorry for your sad news.


I am sorry to heard about your little one. But I second Inga's thoughts. Making her comfortable woul be my goal. Again I am so sorry.


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## Dixie's Mum (Jul 22, 2010)

Thank you to everyone for your recommendations and support. I totally agree, that right now it's all about her quality of life, and putting her through chemo would further compromise that. The vet has given her prednisone which he says should provide her some relief. If that doesn't work, than it's definately time.

Thank you again, so much.


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## FilleBelle (Aug 1, 2007)

I think you have made a wise, if very difficult choice. My thoughts are with you and your furry girl.


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## JuneBud (Feb 17, 2010)

On May 6 I lost my 14-year-old Eskie to lymphoma. She was near death at one point with fluid around her lungs which had to be aspirated. She was very sick. She had the lymphoma in her chest and abdomen. I WISH she had enlarged lymph glands, so we could have known about the cancer sooner. I decided to go the chemotherapy route and she rapidly improved and felt pretty good and had a good quality of life, good appetite, etc., until 2 days before she passed, when she suddenly would not eat or drink. She had an ultrasound and there was a complete blockage of her intestine - too extensive for surgery. The lymphoma in her chest had completely cleared, but the tumor in her intestine got worse. I'm glad we gave her the chemo. At least I felt like we did all we could for her and she had 3-1/2 more good months. I don't feel like her age was against her because she had never been sick before and her breed can live to 16, 17, even 20 years. The vet told me that there is never any way to tell, many dogs will go into remission (even the worst cases) and many will not. The prednisone won't help her live any longer, but it will make her feel better. Chemo is given along with prednisone so she will feel better while the chemo is (hopefully) doing it's job. If you can afford the chemo, give it a try. The chemo was not bad at all, as I was afraid it might be.


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## Noobcakes (Jul 23, 2010)

JuneBud said:


> On May 6 I lost my 14-year-old Eskie to lymphoma. She was near death at one point with fluid around her lungs which had to be aspirated. She was very sick. She had the lymphoma in her chest and abdomen. I WISH she had enlarged lymph glands, so we could have known about the cancer sooner. I decided to go the chemotherapy route and she rapidly improved and felt pretty good and had a good quality of life, good appetite, etc., until 2 days before she passed, when she suddenly would not eat or drink. She had an ultrasound and there was a complete blockage of her intestine - too extensive for surgery. The lymphoma in her chest had completely cleared, but the tumor in her intestine got worse. I'm glad we gave her the chemo. At least I felt like we did all we could for her and she had 3-1/2 more good months. I don't feel like her age was against her because she had never been sick before and her breed can live to 16, 17, even 20 years. The vet told me that there is never any way to tell, many dogs will go into remission (even the worst cases) and many will not. The prednisone won't help her live any longer, but it will make her feel better. Chemo is given along with prednisone so she will feel better while the chemo is (hopefully) doing it's job. If you can afford the chemo, give it a try. The chemo was not bad at all, as I was afraid it might be.


I'm sorry for your loss  But, in my opinion, she's already 14 years old and has lived a full life. Chemo is not 100% and the chances might be very low for her to come out of this. I agree with giving her the best quality of life, instead of trying to give her a little more quantity. I'm sorry Dixie's Mum for the decisions you have had to make


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## JuneBud (Feb 17, 2010)

It's every person's own call. I would never have continued the chemo if it made her sick. It made her feel pretty good. She maintained her interest in life and an excellent appetite and chased a few rabbits. Many of her breed have a lifespan of well over 15 years - even up to 20 years, so age wasn't the major consideration. It was that I made her feel better while at the same time extending her life a little. Most people would treat a 5 year old great dane or boxer and their lifespan is only about 8 years. My girl was 13 (died at 14) and healthy otherwise with a good heart when she was diagnosed and would have been expected to live several more years. You do for them what you can afford to do.


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## Noobcakes (Jul 23, 2010)

JuneBud said:


> It's every person's own call. I would never have continued the chemo if it made her sick. It made her feel pretty good. She maintained her interest in life and an excellent appetite and chased a few rabbits. Many of her breed have a lifespan of well over 15 years - even up to 20 years, so age wasn't the major consideration. It was that I made her feel better while at the same time extending her life a little. Most people would treat a 5 year old great dane or boxer and their lifespan is only about 8 years. My girl was 13 (died at 14) and healthy otherwise with a good heart when she was diagnosed and would have been expected to live several more years. You do for them what you can afford to do.



I agree with you June. But, I think it's more than just doing what you can afford to do. Because if I had to pay for advanced medical care for my puppy, I would take a loan to do it. Like you said, it's more of a personal choice. If my dog was suffering or if it could no longer live a complete life ( can't walk anymore, can't hear/see/smell right anymore) I would prefer it to be put down, than have it suffer around me.


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## JuneBud (Feb 17, 2010)

Noobcakes said:


> I agree with you June. But, I think it's more than just doing what you can afford to do. Because if I had to pay for advanced medical care for my puppy, I would take a loan to do it. Like you said, it's more of a personal choice. If my dog was suffering or if it could no longer live a complete life ( can't walk anymore, can't hear/see/smell right anymore) I would prefer it to be put down, than have it suffer around me.


Certainly, the most important thing is quality of life. As soon as my girl became uncomfortable and lost her interest in food I let her go. People are afraid that chemo might make their dog sicker, but in most cases there is an improvement in quality of life - a big enough improvement that it makes the hour or two a week of chemo treatment worth while. If you can handle it financially, in order words, don't discount treatment because you think you'll be causing more pain. In most cases, you won't be. Chemo is very expensive though, so all my dogs from now on will have health insurance.


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## sassafras (Jun 22, 2010)

That was my experience with chemo as well, JuneBud. I lost a dog to lymphoma in 2008. She never went into full remission but the chemo greatly improved her quality of life for the time we had with her after her diagnosis and she didn't suffer any significant side effects from it. I would do it again in a heartbeat.


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## Noobcakes (Jul 23, 2010)

I have never gone trough that experience, and hope I never will, but if I do, I think my decision will be made on the age and overall health of the dog


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## samagecontrol (Jul 27, 2010)

I've had much more tremendous success treating multiple cancers with natural remedies than with the chemo, radiation or pred., personally. It's certainly not a guarantee, but nothing is with cancer. I'd HIGHLY recommend checking out some Essaic Tea. There's also a company called Azmira that makes a kind of concentrate of it which is much easier to administer. They also make a lymph detoxifier. There's also some products from Buck Mountain that I'd had great success with. I've also done the chemo route. That really isn't all that hard on dogs. They don't seem to get nearly the side effects that people do. But, it's extremely expensive and time consuming. I have a dog, also 14, that had a HUGE sarcoma on her arm and the type usually spreads quickly to the lungs. The cancer is now completely gone with natural remedies and a change in diet. It was amazing. I'm lucky to have an oncologist that's also trained in integrative medicine. If you're interested, feel free to email me and I can link you to some of the things I've had great success with. I wish you luck, I know how crappy of a situation it is.


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