Steve, if you can't do chemo I would at least do strong steroid shots, which can shrink lymphoma tumors and make them feel good for up to a few months. I would ask for a combined dexamethasone and depomedrol shot. I was away all weekend and so just saw your emails or I would have written earlier. These steroids are the best thing to do for lymphoma if you can not do chemo, and I would do them in a second. Michelle
In a message dated 3/19/05 7:28:54 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: << First off, in addition to the other nice notes, thank you Jen, Hideyo and Terri for your prayers and healing vibes... and I am so glad Thor is coming around. I did take Loki in to the vet. It was difficult to get a spot, but eventually found a vet very near my house so as not to upset Loki with a long ride. The initial prognosis did not look good, so I had x-rays taken. The x-rays showed that Loki's lungs were only expanding to half their normal size which means something else was taking space within the cavity. In addition, the Trachea was pushed up to the spine, which suggests the cavity did not just have excessive fluid, but that a tumor was taking the space. I was given lots of options, but I can't do most of them or put Loki through hell. In the end, I asked for, and will probably take the doctors opinion, which is to make him comfortable and take the weekend to say my goodbyes. He is living with the pronounced lung action just okay, but I know it is hard to be perfectly comfortable for him with the distressed breathing. I don't think he has pain per se, but letting him go on too many more days like this, I think gets to the point of becoming painful. I hadn't mentioned it before, but Loki's left eye sometimes dilates much more than the right. This is a sign of a viral infection, FeLV+ or otherwise. Once again, not a good sign, especially with everything else. The doctor gave me some meds to try to alleviate things, for the short term. I'm giving him Furosimide, a diuretic to help with the excessive fluids (I will not subject him to the trauma of extracting the excessive fluid with a needle), and antibiotics to help with a slight, but lingering URI. All this should help his breathing a tiny bit. When it gets worse, or I feel the happy days with him no longer offsets the lingering lack of comfort, I will PTS. This has been a long hard road. I tried, but it was difficult to maintain composure at the vets office. I know I will crash hard after Loki goes. I just can't stand what this disease does. Steve >>
