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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2016 13:33:27 GMT -5
We met with the new vet this morning at the new oncologist office. Watson brought new symptoms to the table while we were describing his issues we have been recently observing.
He peed probably 7 times in less than 20 minutes and when I went to clean up the messes they were small and now had a mucus consistency. He tried a few times to poop and barely pushed anything out and it was green and mucus as well. Both a first for him this morning.
Thankfully we were already at the oncologist when it happened. They want to do a chest x-ray because even when trying to rest his breathing is labored. They are taking him in for an ultrasound this afternoon to see if the cancer has gotten into his organs. Now it's a 4 hour waiting game. Hopefully at least get good news.
Another note that came up today that my wife and I had discussed with our vet was whether or not him being on a raw diet could have caused some of the digestive issues he has been having. Maybe with his weakened immune system he picked something up from the food he would normally be able to process. They are going to send his stool and urine same off to have a culture check on it. Hopefully we haven't unknowingly added to his problems because of his diet.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2016 18:33:13 GMT -5
We got the ultrasound results. The cancer is extremely invasive. His bladder walls are so thickened he can barely hold any urine which is why he has been trying to pee so much. It is in his colon as well putting pressure on his intestines.
Several of his organs near his pelvis are so swollen they are not only putting pressure on the already swollen bladder, they are constantly putting pressure on his lower spine causing him pain in his back.
We're having to say goodbye to our little guy today. He put up an amazing fight.
We will miss you so much.
Dook in peace Watson.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2016 19:53:56 GMT -5
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Post by FerretsnFalcons on Jul 20, 2016 20:14:40 GMT -5
Both you and he fought so hard, I was really hoping he would pull through with the chemo.  Your dedication to him was amazing, you gave him a good couple more months on this earth and now he's ready to move on to wait for you at the bridge. DIP Watson.  |
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Post by abbeytheferret6 on Jul 20, 2016 20:24:07 GMT -5
I know you both are so sad. Bless your hearts for fighting for this one's life. DIP little boy. You were loved sooo much. May you have happy times where you are |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 20, 2016 21:22:21 GMT -5
We're home safely now. Was a very long drive back. We knew today would be a really long day, so we didn't want to take Sherlock are Moriarty with us to be cooped up in the carrier all day. They're trying to find Watson. He has never not been in the carrier when we get back from his appointments. I can't think of a time I've felt quite this helpless trying to tell them Watson isn't here. I wanted to bring him home for them to spend the evening together but I'm not sure it would have been fair to ask that of Watson, especially since we saw him getting worse today. We're so torn up about the decision and how to help them understand.  |
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Post by unclejoe on Jul 21, 2016 6:27:00 GMT -5
Im so sorry you lost the fight. DIP Dr Watson
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Post by Deleted on Jul 21, 2016 9:55:40 GMT -5
I'm so sorry, fly free, Watson! I've been following your progress, he was a role model of strength, and so were you, his family
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Post by Sherry on Jul 22, 2016 10:23:06 GMT -5
Oh no I am so so sorry  I thought the chemo was working for him as well. He and both of you fought SO hard. DIP little one. Fly high and free. For your other little ones since they didn't have the chance to say goodbye to their buddy's body I would do lots of rescue remedy(good idea anyway) and lots of attention. Also be prepared for some behavioural changes in the short term as they may well become angry. |
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Post by Blue on Jul 22, 2016 17:57:34 GMT -5
I'm so so sorry. You all fought so hard, and he did get better for a while. I'm thinking of you and your family  |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 24, 2016 23:41:40 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Aug 23, 2016 0:13:16 GMT -5
It has been a month since we said goodbye to Watson. I'm finally in a place I think I can do a decent follow up and closure to everything. I'll try to keep it short, but this is mainly for the people who followed the chemo process with Watson, and anyone who may look here for advice, or simply to see what the experience was like.
1) Was all of the effort and money we put into giving him a chance at beating the cancer worth it? That is a tough question I have yet to come to terms with. Knowing the outcome? I think my approach would have been to find an alternative to simply help him live as pain free as possible for his last few months rather than subjecting him to all of the medication and vet trips we did. But I can say that looking back at the fact that we lost him. Had he pulled through, we would have moved whatever mountains we were required to get him better. We didn't fully understand what was going on with him, and that goes back to our ignorance and our interaction with the oncologist we were able to see initially. Which leads to the next point.
2) When we had his initial three tumors removed back in March, we had them sent off for lab work because although out vet thought he had Lymphoma, we didn't know which family he might have had. Before we got those lab specific results we had already seen the oncologist and she had set a treatment plan. When we got the lab results back a few days after seeing the oncologist we got really excited because we saw in the report that he had minimal "B" and "T" cell markers in his tumors which meant that he probably didn't have Lymphoma. It even said after that in the report "favors round cell sarcoma not of Lymphomic origin". I really can't put into words how totally excited we were to read that and hear our vet tell us she had been told the lab didn't think it was Lymphoma. The report didn't stop there though and here is the main part where it all fell apart
3) The report continued to say that the tumor families was "rather likely histiocyte in origin with component of a-typical lymphoma". When we were at the new oncologist for the emergency visit a month ago, that oncologist said they had been working with the lab who wrote up Watson's findings and knew what to expect from them. When she got to that part of the write-up, she explained it to us. She let us know that the family of cancer he has is pretty much entirely resistant to treatment methods we have right now. Had we known that we would have contacted the original oncologist to point that part out and see if there needed to be an adjustment to his chemo protocol for that family of cancer rather than the expected Lymphoma. We didn't know that and the original oncologist either didn't catch it, or didn't recognize it.
This was the kicker. The, "If we had only known" part. Had we known his chances of beating the cancer were pretty much non-existent from the beginning I think we might have tried a medicinal route that simply allowed him to live as pain free as possible for his remaining months. The chemo looked like it was helping him since his original tumors had disappeared, so we were willing to see him with low energy most of the time, because we were hopeful it would be worth it to have him fully healthy for a few more years after he finally beat the cancer.
The best thing I can recommend to anyone reading this and considering chemo as an option - If you're considering it, you've already found lumps. You might be considering what to do, or whether to get surgery for your ferret. If you can afford it - I recommend not only having them removed, but have the tumors sent to a lab for what it known as "staining". This has the tumors run through tests so you can find out the specific family of cancer you're dealing with. This knowledge will help you and your oncologist pick an appropriate chemo protocol focused on the family of cancer your ferret is dealing with and can make all the difference in the world to the outcome.
The lab work was another $250 on top of his surgical costs, but for anyone reading this that is in serious consideration about trying to go through chemo with your ferret I think this is well worth the investment. Just make sure you have someone who can help you understand the gravity of what you are reading. Call the Lab that sent the report if you have to. Call multiple oncologists if you can and see if they are familiar with your Lab's write ups to help you understand if need be. Our biggest gap in our care for Watson was missing a key piece of information in the report. Would it have made a difference for Watson with his type being so resistant to treatment? Good chance it wouldn't have. For your little one it can make a huge difference, or it may help you decide the best possible treatment for your little one - whether to proceed with chemo and hope for the best, or simply to make them as comfortable as you can for their remaining time you have together.
If you have any other questions or comments feel free to ask, either here or in a PM if you want. As difficult as all of this was to go through, I do hope this knowledge and information can be helpful to others out there who might run into this situation.
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Post by Sherry on Aug 23, 2016 10:11:51 GMT -5
Thank you so much for allowing us along on the journey you made with Watson. We have all learned a lot through this. And although you did lose your boy the hope is this info will help another somewhere along the line.
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Post by Sherry on Aug 23, 2016 10:12:59 GMT -5
@mallison6, you should get a pm about this thread being moved for a permanent place in our lymphoma board.
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