Thank you so very much for your response...I apologize if it was not clear, but Dharma has been diagnosed with FIP a couple of weeks ago, as lump on her neck sounds as threatening as it can be, right now, treatment for her FIP has to come first. I lost two of my babies Naomi and Peter in August and have seen how quickly this disease progresses. And FIP is stress reduced disease, and I have to minimize the stress I am giving it to her, which include a trip to the vet.. even if it is a cancer, I cannot let her go through the surgery, she is only 5 months old and she only weighs 3.14 lb -- and there is no way that I am going to let her go through the stress..
And my gut feeling is that it is NOT cancer.. if it came from injections, it's too soon to develop (it has been only less than 10 days after her fluid and vitamin injections).. I don't know what it is, but it's definitely not getting bigger,, and again, right now, it's secondary problem to me.. I just need to deal with this FIP first... Again, thank you so very much -- I really appreciate your information and will keep in my hand.. Hideyo -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Lora Sent: Wednesday, September 27, 2006 7:56 PM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: lump from injection site - dangerous? Hideyo, Any new tumor and/or growth mass that suddenly apprears on the body should not be taken lightly. Feline tumors, whether it is a malignant/benign fibrosarcoma or just a fatty subcutaneous cyst, should be evaluated immediately via practicing, licensed, board certified veterinarian whould is experienced, skilled and proficient with feline sarcomas. The good news is that Dharma may not have a fibrosacoma at all. The lump could just be a simple cyst that needs to be drained. A needle biopsy can confirm that. The veterinarian will insert a needle into the core of the tumor, which is attached to an empty syringe, and if the lump is indeed a cyct, he/she will extract fluid; however, if no fluid appears, then it is most likely a fibrosarcoma. Regardless, if the fluid was successfully drained, the sample should be sent to pathology for a histopathology report to rule out possible cancer cells. The bad news is that fibrosarcomas are highly malignant tumors. They can occur for no apparent reason and, in some cases, can occur as a form of vaccine reaction at vaccination sites; more commonly known as Feline Vaccine-Associated Sacoma (FVAS). Obviously, this is a serious side effect when vaccinations are implicated as the cause. Fibrosarcomas generally do not appear to be painful. They progress fairly slowly in most cases, but it is best to remove them as soon as possible due to the difficulty in getting enough tissue around the margins as the tumor grows in size. Once Dharma has been seen by your local and trusted veterinarian and a preoperative biopsy has been completed (some veterinaians will perform a preoperatinve biopsy prior to amputation surgery, some won't) removal of the mass is usually the next step. It is just a personal preference on how comfortable your veterinarain feels about performing the operation on an individual case via case base. Surgery for vaccine-related sarcomas works about 50% of the time. It works a lot better if a biopsy is done prior to the first surgery so that the surgeon knows that this is a fibrosarcoma from the onset. In that case, a surgeon who is familar with surgery for aggressive cancers should be consulted and should perform the surgery. Again, there is some chance that your veterinarian may feel comfortable enough about removing the tumor his/her own self, but most general practitioners do not. Dharma will just have to be examed by your veterinarian an evaluated on individual case via case base. If your veterinarain will perform the operation, great; if not, Dharma will have to be referred to a surgical specialist. Nevertheless, removal of the fibrosarcoma has to be done very aggressively due to their high metastasize rate. These tumors are often malignant and it is not uncommon for the cancer to spread to other regions of the body, usually the nose cavity, chest and lungs. Metastasis to other organs can be very difficult to detect without the assistance of a MRI or CT imaging. This is why is it extremely important to do a WIDE surgical excision that has a wide surgical margin (at least an inch in every direction is necessary when removing the tumor in order to prevent metastasis.) Since an inch below these tumors often includes the bones of the spine there is a strong tendency among veterinarians not to be this aggressive. This is why very few vets will perform the amputation operation on the presumption that a fibrosarcoma is present. There is good evidence to suggest that the wide surgical procedure has the best chance at getting all of the tumor so it is important to plan this surgery well. Due to this, seeing an oncologist first may be best because he/she can tell the surgeon how much tissue has to be removed based on an evaluation of the biopsy results and knowledge of the cancer's location and the potential for postoperative surgical treatment. If the oncology center is not affiliated with a surgeon then another appointment has to be made. This can delay things some but if the planning is done properly, the delay is less important than proper surgical planning and tumor removal. Removal of the tumor is essential, but it is best to perform the operation not only as fast as possible, but as properly as possible too! Performing the surgery correctly is crucial to the cat's health, for if the tumor has not been completely removed, it has a strong possibility of returning. After the amputation surgery has been completed radiation therapy is usually the most common postoperative treatment regarding feline fibrosarcomas. This is one reason to consult with an oncologist even if you use a surgical specialist for the actual surgery. Having both available in one place is an advantage of the veterinary schools and oncology specialty practices. When it is likely that surgery did not include sufficient tissue around the tumor it may be helpful to consider radiation therapy if that is possible. However, if your vets feel confident that he/she has removed removed a very wide margin there may be little benefit to additional therapy. There have been statistical reports that support only a 50% recurrence rate if the tumor was only surgically removed. When surgery does not work to stop the spread of the tumor the prognosis is poor for long term survival. Currently, I am looking at the same situation you are. A few months ago, my Madison Lee had amputation surgery for a tumor that truned out to be a "Medium Grade" malignant fibrosarcoma. She survived the surgery and so far she is not exhibiting any outward symptoms of recurrence. However, we did not consult an oncologist first, she did not have a preoperative biopsy performed, a surgical specialist did not perform the operation and radiation therapy is not economically possible. The nearest oncology specialtist is located in Indianapolis, Indiana...four (4) hours away from us and that is only one way. It is a total eight (8) hours' drive round-trip. Therefore, we opted to have amputation surgery performed via our local and trusted vet and a histopathology report drawn up on the biopsy specimen. We just hope for the best, but are prepared for the worst. Good luck with Dharma's diagnosis. I am hoping that she just has a cyst. Lora
