Cancer

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Elena

Elena

Member Since 2015
The vet called today and said Binky's ultrasound shows cancer that has spread to the lymph nodes. She said the only thing that we can try is prednisone 5mg. Just wondering has anyone here given their cat 5mg tablet? That just seems kinda big for a cat to swallow but I'm thinking it can be cut in half.
 
Elena said:
The vet called today and said Binky's ultrasound shows cancer that has spread to the lymph nodes. She said the only thing that we can try is prednisone 5mg. Just wondering has anyone here given their cat 5mg tablet? That just seems kinda big for a cat to swallow but I'm thinking it can be cut in half.
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I am so sorry about the diagnosis.
Whereabouts is the cancer?
Yes there are cats who are given prednisolone (not prednisone) for some cancers. They are very similar except cats need the prednisolone not the prednisone because of the makeup of the drug.
I will tag @Wendy&Neko as she may be able to help you with this.
I gave prednisolone to one of my cats for IBD but not cancer. 5 mg is not a big dose.
 
Depending on size of cat, even 10 mg is not an uncommon dose and I have given that size to a cat with small cell lymphoma. And as Bron said, prednisolone is what you want. You can get it compounded into a flavoured chew treat which makes it easier to give. With mine I just had to put it into a pill pocket.
 
Bron and Sheba (GA) said:
I am so sorry about the diagnosis.
Whereabouts is the cancer?
Yes there are cats who are given prednisolone (not prednisone) for some cancers. They are very similar except cats need the prednisolone not the prednisone because of the makeup of the drug.
I will tag @Wendy&Neko as she may be able to help you with this.
I gave prednisolone to one of my cats for IBD but not cancer. 5 mg is not a big dose.
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She says it's in his intestine, a large mass, but not sure what type, but his lymph nodes in his abdomen are enlarged as well.
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Depending on size of cat, even 10 mg is not an uncommon dose and I have given that size to a cat with small cell lymphoma. And as Bron said, prednisolone is what you want. You can get it compounded into a flavoured chew treat which makes it easier to give. With mine I just had to put it into a pill pocket.
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did it bother his stomach at all?
 
Yes found out today it is prednisolone not prednisone. Going to ask for a copy of the ultrasound report, they were supposed to already have sent it.
 
we bought a bottle of the tuna-flavored prednisolone liquid from Chewy's, just had to put in the vet's info so they could contact them for the prescription. It was a lot cheaper than buying it from the vet.
 
So sorry to hear that about your cat. I will be keeping Binky in my thoughts and prayers! My sister has a black cat also named Binky.
 
Elena, I am so sorry about Binky. I see you said a large mass. This happened with my cat Maverick. He was on Prednisolone at .5 mg for several years and did very well (appetite returned, gained weight and no more diarrhea) but after Prednisolone alone wasn’t working, we added in Leukeran (chlorambucil) for him. That is a chemo drug for small cell lymphoma. He did really well on this chemo drug with the Prednisolone for a few more years. After that, he had a quite large tumor found in his intestines (he had stopped eating so we did an ultrasound.). We tried the rescue drug called Lomustine, but his body couldn’t handle it. The only reason I mention this is that it’s important to see if there’s a way to find out what kind of cancer Binky has — because different cancers are treated differently. Is there any way to do possibly a fine needle aspiration of one of the lymph nodes to get some cells looked at by a pathologist? Big hugs to you.
 
A large mass likely means large cell lymphoma, not small cell lymphoma. Chlorambucil would not be the treatment for LCL.
 
Suzanne & Darcy said:
Elena, I am so sorry about Binky. I see you said a large mass. This happened with my cat Maverick. He was on Prednisolone at .5 mg for several years and did very well (appetite returned, gained weight and no more diarrhea) but after Prednisolone alone wasn’t working, we added in Leukeran (chlorambucil) for him. That is a chemo drug for small cell lymphoma. He did really well on this chemo drug with the Prednisolone for a few more years. After that, he had a quite large tumor found in his intestines (he had stopped eating so we did an ultrasound.). We tried the rescue drug called Lomustine, but his body couldn’t handle it. The only reason I mention this is that it’s important to see if there’s a way to find out what kind of cancer Binky has — because different cancers are treated differently. Is there any way to do possibly a fine needle aspiration of one of the lymph nodes to get some cells looked at by a pathologist? Big hugs to you.
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Thank you. I'm a little scared now, Binky seems uncomfortable every time he eats. The vet wanted us to try prednisolone. I don't want to give up on Binky but we can't let him suffer. I'm going to try to post the ultrasound report, ill copy and paste it.
 
Findings
Orthogonal radiographs of the abdomen are reviewed, dated June 7, 2022.
The stomach and small intestine are diffusely gas distended, with the duodenum being particularly
enlarged. The liver, spleen, kidneys, and urinary bladder are normal. Serosal detail is adequate. The
abdomen has a distended appearance. The musculoskeletal structures are normal.
Multiple sonographic images of the abdomen are reviewed, dated June 7, 2022.
The kidneys are normal at 4 cm in length. No abnormalities are present with the spleen. The liver and
gallbladder are normal. Numerous small intestinal segments are distended with gas and fluid. The urinary
bladder is normal. Mesenteric lymph nodes are hypoechoic and enlarged up to 4 mm, with some
mineralization in the caudal aspect of 1 of the glands. The small intestine has altered wall layering, with
some areas having a thickened submucosal and muscularis layer. There is a regionally extensive
circumferential bowel mass, with eccentric hypoechoic wall thickening and loss of definition of wall layers
with hyperechoic surrounding fat. Trace peritoneal fluid is present. The pancreas is normal.
Conclusion
1. Moderate multifocal enteropathy with jejunal mass and mesenteric lymphadenopathy. Neoplasia such as

lymphoma, mast cell disease, or carcinoma is considered. Histopathology would be needed for further
characterization of the bowel.
 
Elena said:
Thank you. I'm a little scared now, Binky seems uncomfortable every time he eats. The vet wanted us to try prednisolone. I don't want to give up on Binky but we can't let him suffer. I'm going to try to post the ultrasound report, ill copy and paste it.
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It’s worth trying anything!
 
There are some red flags in the ultrasound report that make me think it’s a possibility that Binky may actually have small cell lymphoma. If getting any kind of a biopsy is absolutely out of the question (via endoscopy even?), you should ask your vet if he/she would consider treating it as small cell lymphoma and adding chlorambucil to the regimen in addition to the Prednisolone. I’m thinking that you don’t have a lot to lose, but you do have a lot to gain if Binky can be helped. It is definitely possible to have a mass involved if this has been going on for a long time (because this happened to my cat.) I would say time is of the essence. I am not at home right now so that’s about all I can say but the thickening of the intestinal layers and loss of definition of those layers are some of the things I am looking at. :bighug::bighug:
 
I think it's a good idea to try the prednisolone. That can make him feel more comfortable, and it is usually part of the treatment regardless of the possible conditions the report mentions. If you could get a needle biopsy of the mass, that could help you figure out what you condition you are dealing with, and what the additional treatment would be going forward.
 
This touches my heart so much. In 2015, my black short haired heart-kid Binx (also called Binky) was diagnosed with intestinal cancer. We decided to go with chemo, and then a feeding tube. We couldn't bring ourselves to make the decision because he was still very much himself up until the day he passed peacefully in our home with us by his side. We had a wonderful extra 4 months with him. My heart goes out to you and your Binky.
 
SaraMV said:
This touches my heart so much. In 2015, my black short haired heart-kid Binx (also called Binky) was diagnosed with intestinal cancer. We decided to go with chemo, and then a feeding tube. We couldn't bring ourselves to make the decision because he was still very much himself up until the day he passed peacefully in our home with us by his side. We had a wonderful extra 4 months with him. My heart goes out to you and your Binky.
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:bighug::bighug::bighug:
 
Wendy&Neko said:
Depending on size of cat, even 10 mg is not an uncommon dose and I have given that size to a cat with small cell lymphoma. And as Bron said, prednisolone is what you want. You can get it compounded into a flavoured chew treat which makes it easier to give. With mine I just had to put it into a pill pocket.
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Hi, the cat that you gave 10 mg how much did he weight?
 
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