# 12 yo Golden diagnosed with Lymphoma



## Ralphies Mom (Jan 12, 2008)

Hi Everyone...

My boy Ralphie has just been diagnosed with Lymphoma. Back in mid January he vomited after eating his breakfast. For days after that he didn't have his usual interest in food. His doc checked him out and did some blood work. Everything came back great. He did not have any swollen nodes or anything physical that she could see. She prescribed Pepcid and a bland diet. His appetite continued to get worse to the point that he would only take specific foods if fed by hand. This went on for a number of weeks and he was loosing weight at a pretty good clip. His Doc recommended a sonogram. The doc/sonographer could not find anything wrong with him on first glance. She went back in "fishing" for cancer since all that she was hearing seemed to match what she believed was lymphoma (age, breed, symptoms). She found a number of enlarged nodes. She tried to aspirate them but they were to deep to reach so she aspirated his liver (where two of the nodes were close to). The report came back with a 70% likelihood that it was high grade large granular lymphoma. 

We were advised to take him to an Oncologist about two hours from where we live. We did that last Thursday. After looking at the previous reports the Doctor stated she could be at peace with the diagnosis of Lymphoma. I asked her about staging and such and she said she was pretty confident and didn't recommend further testing. She gave us two options...we could do nothing (except put him on Prednisone) and he would likely have 1 to 3 months left. The second option was we could do Chemo and hope for a year, maybe more, maybe less. Despite not being financially comfortable with the potential costs of Chemo (close to $7000 when all is said and done) we decided that we had to try everything to give him a chance. We opted for the Chemo. We also had him on Prednisone for the few days prior to our appointment trying to get his appetite sparked. 

Ralphie had his first Chemo treatment last Thursday. He has been eating great and acting like his old self for the most part. Yesterday I noticed that he had very loose stools twice. Then over night he began barking and by the time I got to the kitchen where he was he had had an accident on the floor (watery stool). We think it is either effects from the Chemo or the fact that we were so excited that he was eating again that we were feeding him anything and everything. We sent a message to the Oncology clinic over the weekend regarding what to do about the diarrhea but we have not heard back from them as of yet (they are closed on Mondays).

We have three more weeks of treatment and then a break for three weeks and then we begin again. It is a bad time for this as well because our beloved vet that we have had for over 10 years is closing up her practice and is moving across the country (she is now officially closed) so we must now find a new Doc. This is all very unsettling for us. I have been doing as much research on the internet as I can but it's about knowing what resources are trustworthy. We have no idea what the future holds for him. We just want him to have a good quality of life and be free from pain. The trip to the clinic is a little stressful for him because it is a 2 hour road trip. He has to stay at the clinic for about 8 hours each visit. 

I guess I am just venting here because I know many of you understand what we are going through and maybe can offer any words of wisdom or advice as to how to manage this journey with Ralphie. I would appreciate any feedback you could give me, right now I am heartbroken yet hopeful and am willing to do what I have to to make his time left with us happy and comfortable.

Thanks for listening....

Kerry


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## CAROLINA MOM (May 12, 2009)

Going through chemo treatments whether it be for a human or a dog, is very hard on the system, Diarrhea or loose stools is one of the many side effects. Did the oncologist let you know the side effects or what to expect while your boy is being treated?

Your Vet can prescribe some medication that can help with the diarrhea, OTC remedies are not recommended. You can add cooked white rice to his food. 

I lost my girl to Lymphoma almost 3 years ago. My Vet did not feel she was a good candidate for Chemo, she felt putting her on prednisone was a better plan for her. She did really well on it, I had 6 months from the time of her diagnosis.


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## Lincgold (May 11, 2018)

I’m so sorry to hear about Ralphie. My 5 year old female Golden, Katie, had lymphoma. The enlargement of her glands in her throat caused her to lose her bark. With treatment at Tufts here in Mass we managed to keep her for 8 months. I will keep you both in my prayers. Please keep us updated.


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## cwag (Apr 25, 2017)

I am so sorry for Ralphie's diagnosis.


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## Neeko13 (Jul 10, 2010)

I'm sorry to hear of Ralphie s lymphoma diagnosis..I wish you all the best...it's a tough decision, esp. when you need to find a new vet...best wishes ...


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## Shalva (Jul 16, 2008)

Lymphoma is actually the only cancer that I would treat for. With treatment/chemo dogs can go into remission fairly quickly and can have a good year or more in remission and that is a GOOD quality of life during that time. 

Dogs for the most part handle chemo much better than people do so I would have no qualms about doing treatment for lymphoma..... and like I said I would not do anything but palliative care for other cancers but Lymphoma is highly treatable.


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## Peri29 (Aug 5, 2017)

Totally agree on Chemo. One of my street dog that I adopted as stray has been diagnosed with lymphoma. She is quite old ( we do not know exact age). It's been exactly 3 years since she was diagnosed and she is still with us. She is a fighter. In addition to that she is on ketogenic diet . No longer level 3 but level 1.


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