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Thank you so much for your advice which is really informative and comforting. Harry has been through it the last few months, he had a close call after eating a sock (he pinched it out of the washing basket - yes at his age) and had to have a major operation, losing his brother really affected him, then he had a really bad turn with arthritis and is now on Metacam. Bearing all this in mind and your advice (and the vets next week) we will really consider our options carefully. He is now on a new diet designed for him(I better check this now) and is taking herbal supplements for his joints. He has never been so well and has lost a weight which can only be a good thing. Thanks again and I'll let you know how we get on.
You and Harry have been through a lot, but appear to be on a good course now, so best wishes as you continue this journey.
Hi Southward Bound,
Just to let you know that Harry had his tumour removed. He is back home now but quite distressed as he has been through a lot. They have said there will probably be microscopic cancer cells still there as they couldn't get clean margins due to the location without damaging his leg. The good news is that the scan revealed it hasn't spread elsewhere although the tumour has been sent to the lab for staging again. We have to go back in 2 weeks to have his stiches removed and see the oncologist. We've been given a few options to think about- intense radiotherapy with a 75% chance success rate but I don't want to put him through this 3 times a week - total cost £7500 or 4 sessions of radiotherapy to slow the cancer down - total cost £5500 or just monitor the site for regrowth. I think we are going to do the 4 sessions and then that is it, no more treatment. I just want to give him the best chance and then lead a normal life until the sad day comes. What are your thoughts on this? Thanks
Hi Southward Bound,
Just to let you know that Harry had his tumour removed. He is back home now but quite distressed as he has been through a lot. They have said there will probably be microscopic cancer cells still there as they couldn't get clean margins due to the location without damaging his leg. The good news is that the scan revealed it hasn't spread elsewhere although the tumour has been sent to the lab for staging again. We have to go back in 2 weeks to have his stiches removed and see the oncologist. We've been given a few options to think about- intense radiotherapy with a 75% chance success rate but I don't want to put him through this 3 times a week - total cost £7500 or 4 sessions of radiotherapy to slow the cancer down - total cost £5500 or just monitor the site for regrowth. I think we are going to do the 4 sessions and then that is it, no more treatment. I just want to give him the best chance and then lead a normal life until the sad day comes. What are your thoughts on this? Thanks
I might make the same choices, and would do everything I can holistically/diet wise to starve those cells that remain. We were told that spindle cells don't tend to spread to other areas of the body and remain mostly localized, which is a good thing. Also, they tend to grow slowly, which we found was true but I don't know how much of that was due to the Thymex that we were giving our lab. Our holistic vet told us that it has been found in studies to slow the growth of cancer cells, so we added that to his program.
We tripled the length of time the university vet hospital and others said our dog would have without treatment and he had the best chance to lead a normal life -- which is what you want for Harry. I hope and pray that you are able to do the same.
Hi Thank you for your words.. We are now back to square one! He was quite happy with a ring and didn't get at his stitches but we left him to go to work and he ripped out his bandage & stitches so he has had to be re-stitched another £400.. It has been so stressful including the financial side as we are now up to our insurance limit and have to pay for radiotherapy when it eventually heals! Thanks again for your advice.
For those of you who want to research this (it's a somewhat new development)...there is an injectable dye that can identify cancer cells during surgery so that the vet can make sure to remove all of them (not having to rely on guessing at an adequate margin).
I'm not sure how prevalent is its use or how readily available it is.
I've been following this thread for some time now and appreciate all the discussion and advice people have provided. I am also dealing with spindle cell sarcoma on my 13.5 year old lab. I discovered the tumor last October under her left armpit area. Was about the size of a walnut. I elected not to do surgery in May 2015 as the surgeon said recovery would be long and tough given the size of incision and location (chest/shoulder area). The tumor has slowly grown to the size of a tennis ball and some fur has rubbed off due to the tumor rubbing on the floor now. Had x-rays and ultrasound done and the cancer has not spread. Just cancelled surgery for tomorrow as the surgeon said he is 100% sure the the tumor will recur due to the tentacle nature of this tumor type and he'd have to remove chest and leg muscle to get wide margins. I am worried about impacting her ability to walk - she has bad arthritis in colder months and needs all the strength she can get. Hoping I made the correct decision by letting her be and enjoying as much quality of life that she has left. Besides a close call with an adverse reaction to Rimadyl, docs can't believe she is 13.5 years old. Such a great, loyal and loving dog - my best friend. Will try some of the holistic advice people have shared to slow tumor growth. Right now she is fed Natural Balance LID potato and duck. Saw people mentioned salmon and mackerel which is also a good idea. My freezer will soon be full of fresh salmon as they are starting to run in NY now. Thank you to the person who post the following line " It's not only in how we care for our furry friends, but also in how we let them go that we show our love". Made my decision easier this morning when I cancelled surgery.
^^^ Like your lab, ours also had difficulty with arthritis and bad joints, so we decided against surgery.
We had a little over 2 good and happy years, and do not regret the decision.
When my dog's tumor became so big that abrasion occurred on the floor or on carpeting when he lounged and slept, I made a soft fabric covering for his leg. The tumor was on the rear leg (stifle). I used elastic around bottom, and ribbon tie in top fold. Both top and bottom were narrower than the middle, so the 'boot' stayed on loosely and comfortably and could be easily removed for washing. This protected the stretched skin where the hair was worn off and worked well for us.
From all I have learned about inflammation of cells (breakdown of cell walls allowing for disease to set in), and inflammatory foods, I have done some modification of my own diet by eliminating as much inflammatory foods as possible. I rarely eat poultry, for example as it is highly inflammatory. Same with discrimination between 'bad' and 'good' carbs. I do the same for my dogs and cats when selecting their food choices. Our experience with our lab changed our lifestyle for the better. He taught us a lot while he lived, and even now the learning continues.
Thanks Southward Bound. I hope to get much time left with our lab. It will be a year in October since we first identified the lump. Not looking forward to the day that we'll have to make the decision. For now she is happy and we'll spoil the heck out of her with much attention and love. I am certain we made the correct decision by forgoing surgery. I have read many journal articles regarding this type of cancer in dogs and many conclusions appear promising. However, this type of cancer is difficult to excise completely and one should weigh the risks of surgery against the chance for recurrence and age of the dog. Since our lab is near or at the end of her life expectancy (never had a lab live past 11 years old, our lab now is 13.5 yrs old) opting out of surgery was the more conservative and best choice in my opinion. She is very happy, tail wags continuously and still has the sparkle in her eye. Best not to impact her quality of life with surgery.
Thanks for recommending the anti-inflammatory diet and I'll have to create some type of protectant garment to prevent the tumor from rubbing on the floor. I tried to craftly engineer a jock strap to act as a tumor bra but that did not make it through the day with our dog. Looked as silly as it sounds!
Thanks for recommending the anti-inflammatory diet and I'll have to create some type of protectant garment to prevent the tumor from rubbing on the floor. I tried to craftly engineer a jock strap to act as a tumor bra but that did not make it through the day with our dog. Looked as silly as it sounds!
Kudos to you for being that creative. You will come up with something that works, so don't give up.
I made several tries at ours before I succeeded. I'd give you my pattern, but that won't help you since the tumor is located in a different place.
[SIZE=3]I wanted to post some publishedliterature on spindle cell tumors (aka subcutaneous soft tissue sarcomas) in theevent anyone is searching for data, answers, advice etc. As a scientist, I rely heavily on researchpublished to make educated decisions on events that unfold in my life,especially when the well-being of my family and pets are at risk. When faced with a “go or no-go” decision tosurgically remove the spindle cell tumor from my 13.5 yr old Labrador, I extensivelyresearched publications, spoke with 4 surgeons and combed relentlessly throughmessage boards gathering as much information as possible. While the below publication links and studyconclusions (can view full text publications on links provided) offer much hopeand promise to someone facing the decision to surgically excise a tumor and apossible “cure”, tumor recurrence is almost certain. My findings on message boards and discussionswith individuals at cancer centers indicate (offer a different perspective thanthe published literature) that these tumors will most likely recur in a fewmonths after excision, even when clean (wide) marginal excisions aretaken. This type of tumor, althoughappearing localized, consists of tendrils that extend out into connectivetissue and muscle. It is difficult toget 100% of these cancerous cells during surgery and it only takes a singlecell to divide and grow causing tumor recurrence.
Of the four surgeons Iconsulted with, only one surgeon honestly said that he was 100% certain thistumor will recur in my beloved lab (1-6 months and most of time recurs moreaggressively). All surgeons recommendedsurgery to excise the tumor (some wanted to de-bulk others attempt radicalprocedures to take wide margins, surrounding tissue and muscle with hopes ofobtaining clean margins). The high probabilityfor recurrence was the deciding factor in my decision not to undergo surgical excision. The risks associated with surgery andrecovery also weighed heavily into my decision. I could not put her through the surgery and hard recovery only to have thetumor come back in a few short months – often with vengeance. My dog has been living with this tumor for ayear now, it is slow growing (walnut size to tennis ball size in 12 months) andI will spoil her rotten until she tells me her time is up.
Just wanted to share myexperience (opinion) with others who may be facing the same issue I and manyothers are dealing with. The support Ireceived from on-line friends has been such a blessing and each of you is anangel!
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Kudos to you for being that creative. You will come up with something that works, so don't give up.
