05/20 Puddin AMPS 298, +2 474, PMPS 339, +3 483

[Bella & Puddin]

First day of 8u. No ketones. Talked to vet about Acromegaly and IAA testing (this might be the 3rd or 4th time asking) and he just says it's hard to coordinate the testing and if he's positive for Acromegaly there is nothing to be done.

Previous: https://www.felinediabetes.com/FDMB...391-2-427-6-348-11-340-pmps-294-3-389.290202/

 

[Wendy&Neko]

It's not that hard to get the testing done. We have people here do it on their own. Or at least coach their vet through it - which is what I had to do. Vet draws blood, spins it, sends it to MSU. If vet doesn't have an account with MSU, they have to create on. MSU will even send the mailer. More info here:
MSU VDL testing instructions for IGF-1 and IAA If the vet is lazy, he can send it to Idexx who will send it onto MSU. But it will cost more.

If kitty is positive for acromegaly, there are treatments. Note the plural. There is surgery (pituitary removal) - pricey and only a couple places in the US that do it. There is stereotactic radiation therapy. Not every city has it, but North Carolina State University can do it, and are one of the best at it. So this may require some travel and also some cost. Neko had SRT, but at Colorado State University. Third option, what most people do here now, mostly cause it's so much cheaper and you can do it at home, is give the medication cabergoline. We've even had about 5ish cats go OTJ on it. The rest generally go to lower doses and some of the side effect lesson. Paper in this post, might want to hand over to your vet.
New paper on: Cabergoline treatment in cats with diabetes mellitus and hypersomatotropism

 

[Bella & Puddin]

It's not that hard to get the testing done. We have people here do it on their own. Or at least coach their vet through it - which is what I had to do. Vet draws blood, spins it, sends it to MSU. If vet doesn't have an account with MSU, they have to create on. MSU will even send the mailer. More info here:
MSU VDL testing instructions for IGF-1 and IAA If the vet is lazy, he can send it to Idexx who will send it onto MSU. But it will cost more.

If kitty is positive for acromegaly, there are treatments. Note the plural. There is surgery (pituitary removal) - pricey and only a couple places in the US that do it. There is stereotactic radiation therapy. Not every city has it, but North Carolina State University can do it, and are one of the best at it. So this may require some travel and also some cost. Neko had SRT, but at Colorado State University. Third option, what most people do here now, mostly cause it's so much cheaper and you can do it at home, is give the medication cabergoline. We've even had about 5ish cats go OTJ on it. The rest generally go to lower doses and some of the side effect lesson. Paper in this post, might want to hand over to your vet.
New paper on: Cabergoline treatment in cats with diabetes mellitus and hypersomatotropism

Thank you - the post you linked is very helpful.
We are less than 1.5hrs from NC State - we've been there for a few of our pets, actually.
I'll talk to the vet next week again and tell him that I can handle the shipping of the blood to MSU, we'll see what he thinks about this. He actually suggested lowering the dosage down to 5.5u (when we saw the 100s reading), but it's not something I want to do after all of this methodical work! I have to remember that he's not on the same page as me (this forum). Also, I'm just confused why we can't just get this test done easily.

Thank you so much, Wendy!