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#1
September 4th 04, 03:51 AM
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Question about cat with leg tumor (longish)
Hello,
I'm somewhat confused about a situation with my cat, and would really appreciate some informed advise. To start, I have a cat who is approximately 15 yrs. old who has a large growth on his left-rear leg - it's about the size of a small peach and is ulcerating the skin to the point where it bleeds occasionally and is scabbed over. I never noticed this until I was shaving some mats off his fur and noticed that he had a dried-out clot of blood stuck in the fur. So far, I've been to three different vets about this problem: Vet 1 first prescribed an antibiotic for a week to see if the growth went down in size. A week later, I took that cat in and the growth was still the same size. He did bloodwork/uranalys and, other than some anemia, said that the cat is a good candidate for surgery. He offered to remove the tumor himself, and mentioned that there was a risk of the cat not having full function of the leg afterwards. He said that a biopsy would be done on the growth after the surgery. He also took x-rays which seemed to indicate that there were no tumors on the lungs (or other organs) and that the tumor on the leg didn't involve the bone. I wanted a second opinion, so I went to vet 2 who looked at the growth and immediately recommended I see an oncologist as he didn't want to tackle any surgery this large, and was almost certain the growth was a tumor. So, onto vet 3 who is a certified oncologist. He performed an asperation of the growth and the result was inconclusive. He is certain that the growth is a tumor, however. He then, had me consult with a surgeon who said that the leg will need to come off to remove the growth and that my cat is a good candidate for that, since it hasn't grown too far toward to rest of his body. He also mentioned that a biopsy would be done AFTER the surgery. OK, now to my problem with all this. Why haven't any of these doctors wanted to do a biopsy FIRST to determine what they are dealing with before going into surgery? The oncologist mentioned that this had been growing for some time, so if that's the case, then if it's a malignant tumor, wouldn't there be a high chance that it has spread to some other parts of the body by now? From what I understand, x-rays will only show tumors once they are of a reasonably large size, and cannot detect a tumor just starting out - is this correct? My thinking, with regard to my 15 year-old cat, is that if the tumor is benign, go ahead and amputate the leg (or the tumor), hopefully giving him some more quality time on this earth. But, if it's malignant, I can't see doing anything other than making him comfortable since I don't think it would be fair to put him through surgery, and then chemo, and possibly more surgeries if more tumors pop up. Right now he can walk and purrs when I pet him, and will play with a string, so I don't see that he's suffering that much other than the anemia making him listless most of the time. Maybe my thinking is based on incorrect information, so please help me understand this situation better.... Pat 
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#2
September 4th 04, 04:57 AM
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"-" wrote in message
... Hello, I'm somewhat confused about a situation with my cat, and would really appreciate some informed advise. To start, I have a cat who is approximately 15 yrs. old who has a large growth on his left-rear leg - it's about the size of a small peach and is ulcerating the skin to the point where it bleeds occasionally and is scabbed over. I never noticed this until I was shaving some mats off his fur and noticed that he had a dried-out clot of blood stuck in the fur. So far, I've been to three different vets about this problem: snip My thinking, with regard to my 15 year-old cat, is that if the tumor is benign, go ahead and amputate the leg (or the tumor), hopefully giving him some more quality time on this earth. But, if it's malignant, I can't see doing anything other than making him comfortable since I don't think it would be fair to put him through surgery, and then chemo, and possibly more surgeries if more tumors pop up. Right now he can walk and purrs when I pet him, and will play with a string, so I don't see that he's suffering that much other than the anemia making him listless most of the time. Maybe my thinking is based on incorrect information, so please help me understand this situation better.... Pat I want to qualify my response by saying that this is just my opinion and I have no experience with this type of situation. I believe the vets point of view is that the tumor needs to be removed whether it is benign or malignant, so may as well do the biopsy after the tumor is removed. Just because it's malignant, does not necessarily mean the cancer has spread very far. I would think your cat would be more comfortable without the tumor, even if it has spread and he doesn't have a great deal of time left. I sincerely hope it is not malignant and you have many more years left with your boy. -- -Kelly kelly at farringtons dot net www.kelltek.com Check out www.snittens.com
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#3
September 4th 04, 04:57 AM
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"-" wrote in message
... Hello, I'm somewhat confused about a situation with my cat, and would really appreciate some informed advise. To start, I have a cat who is approximately 15 yrs. old who has a large growth on his left-rear leg - it's about the size of a small peach and is ulcerating the skin to the point where it bleeds occasionally and is scabbed over. I never noticed this until I was shaving some mats off his fur and noticed that he had a dried-out clot of blood stuck in the fur. So far, I've been to three different vets about this problem: snip My thinking, with regard to my 15 year-old cat, is that if the tumor is benign, go ahead and amputate the leg (or the tumor), hopefully giving him some more quality time on this earth. But, if it's malignant, I can't see doing anything other than making him comfortable since I don't think it would be fair to put him through surgery, and then chemo, and possibly more surgeries if more tumors pop up. Right now he can walk and purrs when I pet him, and will play with a string, so I don't see that he's suffering that much other than the anemia making him listless most of the time. Maybe my thinking is based on incorrect information, so please help me understand this situation better.... Pat I want to qualify my response by saying that this is just my opinion and I have no experience with this type of situation. I believe the vets point of view is that the tumor needs to be removed whether it is benign or malignant, so may as well do the biopsy after the tumor is removed. Just because it's malignant, does not necessarily mean the cancer has spread very far. I would think your cat would be more comfortable without the tumor, even if it has spread and he doesn't have a great deal of time left. I sincerely hope it is not malignant and you have many more years left with your boy. -- -Kelly kelly at farringtons dot net www.kelltek.com Check out www.snittens.com
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#4
September 4th 04, 05:46 AM
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#5
September 4th 04, 05:46 AM
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#6
September 4th 04, 05:32 PM
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Has your cat been vaccinated in this area? If so, it is quite likely to be
a vaccine related sarcoma, a cancer which is locally very aggressive but doesn't usually metastasize. My cat had one, and I discovered it quite late. I made the mistake of allowing the regular vet to "remove" it, only to find out that it wasn't completely removable, and it tripled in size in a couple of weeks. We ended up at the University of PA and she had the whole leg and hip removed. She lived another 6 months, only to succumb to something presumed to be FIP (no cancer had spread). I don't think the biopsy can be performed without surgery, so I'd definitely follow through with the oncologist. They may be able to do a preliminary biopsy while the cat is "on the table" and complete any necessary amputation then, without further trauma to the kitty. By the way, my cat did very well on 3 legs, even learning to run! Jumping wasn't possible, though. Keep us posted. "-" wrote in message ... Hello, I'm somewhat confused about a situation with my cat, and would really appreciate some informed advise. To start, I have a cat who is approximately 15 yrs. old who has a large growth on his left-rear leg - it's about the size of a small peach and is ulcerating the skin to the point where it bleeds occasionally and is scabbed over. I never noticed this until I was shaving some mats off his fur and noticed that he had a dried-out clot of blood stuck in the fur. So far, I've been to three different vets about this problem: Vet 1 first prescribed an antibiotic for a week to see if the growth went down in size. A week later, I took that cat in and the growth was still the same size. He did bloodwork/uranalys and, other than some anemia, said that the cat is a good candidate for surgery. He offered to remove the tumor himself, and mentioned that there was a risk of the cat not having full function of the leg afterwards. He said that a biopsy would be done on the growth after the surgery. He also took x-rays which seemed to indicate that there were no tumors on the lungs (or other organs) and that the tumor on the leg didn't involve the bone. I wanted a second opinion, so I went to vet 2 who looked at the growth and immediately recommended I see an oncologist as he didn't want to tackle any surgery this large, and was almost certain the growth was a tumor. So, onto vet 3 who is a certified oncologist. He performed an asperation of the growth and the result was inconclusive. He is certain that the growth is a tumor, however. He then, had me consult with a surgeon who said that the leg will need to come off to remove the growth and that my cat is a good candidate for that, since it hasn't grown too far toward to rest of his body. He also mentioned that a biopsy would be done AFTER the surgery. OK, now to my problem with all this. Why haven't any of these doctors wanted to do a biopsy FIRST to determine what they are dealing with before going into surgery? The oncologist mentioned that this had been growing for some time, so if that's the case, then if it's a malignant tumor, wouldn't there be a high chance that it has spread to some other parts of the body by now? From what I understand, x-rays will only show tumors once they are of a reasonably large size, and cannot detect a tumor just starting out - is this correct? My thinking, with regard to my 15 year-old cat, is that if the tumor is benign, go ahead and amputate the leg (or the tumor), hopefully giving him some more quality time on this earth. But, if it's malignant, I can't see doing anything other than making him comfortable since I don't think it would be fair to put him through surgery, and then chemo, and possibly more surgeries if more tumors pop up. Right now he can walk and purrs when I pet him, and will play with a string, so I don't see that he's suffering that much other than the anemia making him listless most of the time. Maybe my thinking is based on incorrect information, so please help me understand this situation better.... Pat
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#7
September 4th 04, 05:32 PM
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Has your cat been vaccinated in this area? If so, it is quite likely to be
a vaccine related sarcoma, a cancer which is locally very aggressive but doesn't usually metastasize. My cat had one, and I discovered it quite late. I made the mistake of allowing the regular vet to "remove" it, only to find out that it wasn't completely removable, and it tripled in size in a couple of weeks. We ended up at the University of PA and she had the whole leg and hip removed. She lived another 6 months, only to succumb to something presumed to be FIP (no cancer had spread). I don't think the biopsy can be performed without surgery, so I'd definitely follow through with the oncologist. They may be able to do a preliminary biopsy while the cat is "on the table" and complete any necessary amputation then, without further trauma to the kitty. By the way, my cat did very well on 3 legs, even learning to run! Jumping wasn't possible, though. Keep us posted. "-" wrote in message ... Hello, I'm somewhat confused about a situation with my cat, and would really appreciate some informed advise. To start, I have a cat who is approximately 15 yrs. old who has a large growth on his left-rear leg - it's about the size of a small peach and is ulcerating the skin to the point where it bleeds occasionally and is scabbed over. I never noticed this until I was shaving some mats off his fur and noticed that he had a dried-out clot of blood stuck in the fur. So far, I've been to three different vets about this problem: Vet 1 first prescribed an antibiotic for a week to see if the growth went down in size. A week later, I took that cat in and the growth was still the same size. He did bloodwork/uranalys and, other than some anemia, said that the cat is a good candidate for surgery. He offered to remove the tumor himself, and mentioned that there was a risk of the cat not having full function of the leg afterwards. He said that a biopsy would be done on the growth after the surgery. He also took x-rays which seemed to indicate that there were no tumors on the lungs (or other organs) and that the tumor on the leg didn't involve the bone. I wanted a second opinion, so I went to vet 2 who looked at the growth and immediately recommended I see an oncologist as he didn't want to tackle any surgery this large, and was almost certain the growth was a tumor. So, onto vet 3 who is a certified oncologist. He performed an asperation of the growth and the result was inconclusive. He is certain that the growth is a tumor, however. He then, had me consult with a surgeon who said that the leg will need to come off to remove the growth and that my cat is a good candidate for that, since it hasn't grown too far toward to rest of his body. He also mentioned that a biopsy would be done AFTER the surgery. OK, now to my problem with all this. Why haven't any of these doctors wanted to do a biopsy FIRST to determine what they are dealing with before going into surgery? The oncologist mentioned that this had been growing for some time, so if that's the case, then if it's a malignant tumor, wouldn't there be a high chance that it has spread to some other parts of the body by now? From what I understand, x-rays will only show tumors once they are of a reasonably large size, and cannot detect a tumor just starting out - is this correct? My thinking, with regard to my 15 year-old cat, is that if the tumor is benign, go ahead and amputate the leg (or the tumor), hopefully giving him some more quality time on this earth. But, if it's malignant, I can't see doing anything other than making him comfortable since I don't think it would be fair to put him through surgery, and then chemo, and possibly more surgeries if more tumors pop up. Right now he can walk and purrs when I pet him, and will play with a string, so I don't see that he's suffering that much other than the anemia making him listless most of the time. Maybe my thinking is based on incorrect information, so please help me understand this situation better.... Pat
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