As a registered veterinary nursemaid , I ’ve seen the spoiled of the worst case . Anytime my own favourite get grisly , my psyche reach for all the likely thing that could be wrong . So when my 6 - class - onetime cat , Lily , start lose weight and develop smelly diarrhea , I create a laundry list of possible diagnoses : worms , nutrient allergies , and thyrotoxicosis , among others . I prepare myself for a massive bill and meds to give at home . What I was n’t prepared for was a cancer diagnosing . Yet that ’s exactly what I received .
Lily had small - cellular telephone intestinal lymphoma , which is the most common cancer see in cats . Fortunately , the prognosis is really good . Cats live an norm of 18 to 30 months(1.5 to 2.5 years ) with treatment . Even though the at - home treatment plan might sense overwhelming at first , I foretell it ’s more accomplishable than you think . Lily agitate her cancer for almost exactly two year before I had to say goodby , and I learned a lot of tips and lesson along the path .
How I Treated My Cat for Intestinal Lymphoma
After I got over the initial shock of her diagnosis ( which took a while ) , I went intofull - blow nanny mode . “ OK , so what can we do to assist her ? ” I asked Lily ’s veterinarian . And , fortunately , the answer was a portion . enteric cancer in cat-o'-nine-tails is n’t curable , but there are plenty of ways to keep it under command and give a ducky a great quality of life .
Oral Chemotherapy
I get it . The word “ chemo ” can vocalize wholly intimidating . Unlike when people receive chemo , most pets do n’t get demented at all or have just mild side essence . The great news program about humble - mobile phone intestinal lymphoma is that it ’s one of the cancers that does n’t require injectable chemotherapy .
Instead , I was able to give Lily her chemo by lip . She was dictate Leukeran , and I needed to give her a dose twice a workweek . When I get the first bottle , I was shocked to see just how self-aggrandizing the abridgment were . “ There is absolutely no way she ’ll eat this in aPill Pocket , ” I thought . But I was wrong , and to my surprisal , she gobbled it mightily up .
Oral Steroids
In ecumenical , thebest course of action for treating low - prison cell enteral lymphomais a compounding of unwritten sex hormone and chemotherapy . Because every cat I ’ve ever known has done better with liquid medication rather of oral contraceptive pill , I had the steroid compound into a tasty ( or so I consider ) Anguilla sucklandii - season suspension . It was expensive , but I figured it would be deserving it .
After several hebdomad of chase my sick niggling cat around the planetary house and wiping dribbles of medical specialty off her chin , neck , and sometimes my bulwark , I was about quick to throw in the towel . She hated it , but I think I hated it more . So I finally decided to seek a different form of the same steroid and hide a small pill inside a Pill Pocket . She ate it right away .
Anti-Nausea Medication
Lily was never one of thosepukey cats(you know , the one who vomits if you look at them sidewise ) , but I could tell she was nauseated toward the end . My veterinary prescribedCerenia , which is an anti - nausea medication that also has analgetic attribute to help with belly bother . I could tell it made her a circumstances more well-off .
Regular Bloodwork
While the sex hormone and chemo are fighting the enteral Crab cells , they can also have a negatively charged shock on other body systems . I had to bestow Lily into the hospital for routine bloodwork every dyad of months . We checked CBCs ( complete blood counts ) to verify her white blood mobile phone did n’t get too downcast from the chemo and run chemical science venire to supervise electronic organ function and stop her glucose .
The life anticipation of a cat with small cell intestinal lymphoma is 1.5 to 2.5 twelvemonth with appropriate intervention .
Things to Keep in Mind Throughout Treatment
The treatment communications protocol for this disease is n’t just a one - and - done kind of thing . It ’s something I postulate to remain indefinitely and reevaluate as need to keep the cancer under control while also keeping Lily well-off . But , as with any long - full term medicament , problem can always pop up . And believe me , they did .
Saying Goodbye to Lily
Despite the few hiccup we meet along the style , Lily did fantastic with her treatment . She was back to her chubby , playful ego in no time , and I was taking reward of every additional second I had with her . So when my final few weeks with Lily get in , I knew they were the last .
The weight she ’d put back on after start the handling was tardily melting off of her , and her pelt began to look a little unkempt . The decision ofwhen to say goodbye to a petis a very personal one , and I still marvel if I did it too late or too presently . But I do know that I ’m so grateful for the additional years I got with Lily , thanks to her intervention and unbelievable veterinary squad .
