Acromegaly and resultant diabetes cured by pituitary removal

Disappointment.. Camilla called last night to say that titans white cell count was low and to suggest a 2 day pause, a couple of scans, and a dose of antibiotics . We are devastated but agreed. Trying to get a meeting today before we fly home . Also I forgot to mention that at the previous meeting they expressed doubt whether TITAN could fly in an unpressurised plane after his op.
 
Oh no! I'm sorry there's been a delay in the procedure and hope Titan can recover soon. Do you have alternative ways home besides the small planes? Or maybe the plane can fly really low and take the scenic route. :smuggrin:
 
Yes fast ferry is a minimum 8 hours doortodoor but departure times and Rvc hours probably mean an overnight on the south coast. We would probably have to bring the car over a day or two early. Haven't yet discussed skimming the ground with pilot or the RVC. In fact we are still sitting in a pub in St Albans waiting for a call from them. Titan's team a bit demoralised; but good news from Amanda and Shmee in NYC !
 
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The delay is unfortunate. With luck the operation will occur soon, and Titan will get into recovery mode. This delay is especially unfortunate because he has such high BG now. But he is in good hands with people who understand the disease in depth.
 
Good news! Went back to see Camilla at 1500. They have rerun the bloods, the figures are acceptable, and it's all go for tomorrow. We decided not to visit him (which was hard), and we flew home this evening. Camilla confirmed they dont think he should fly soon after surgery. But they might arrange an early morning departure so we could catch the ferry. All those details can wait.. tomorrow is the big day...wish us luck!
P.S. the pituitary gland and tumour together are about 7mm across, (just a tad over one quarter of an inch)
 
That is really good news. Isn't it amazing how such a small gland can control so much in a kitteh! I really hope the surgery goes as well as it did for Amanda and Shmee.:bighug:
 
Just heard from Joe the surgeon. The pituitary removal was a success and Titan is in recovery. His bleeding was more than average, but has stopped and he will get a transfusion if necessary. His labs showed low-ish platelet levels which slows the clotting. Still not out of the woods completely, but things sound hopeful.
 
Thanks for the update John. Bleeding is one if the risks of the surgery but I am glad to hear it stopped. Paws crossed for a quick recovery. Is he in the hospital for a week?
 
Further call from Camilla. It is really good that they keep us informed like this. Titan coming round, eating (which is what he does best!) and BGs around 20 which is better. Currently on intravenous insulin, will be switched to sub-cutaneous tomorrow.
 
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Wow, he really looks good, despite just having surgery. Heal fast, sweet Titan.
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Set a good example for Sophie and her surgery in 26 days...
 
He really does look very good after surgery. They did a great job. I am really happy for you guys and Titan.

Healing vines for Titan's continued recovery.:bighug::bighug:
 
Call from Camilla at 1100 as promised. TITAN doing well BG has been as high as 37/666 !!! And as low as 7/126. Eating well.
Finally got the IAA result. It is described as just th IA, Insulin antibodies, or INAB result. Stated result is 1%, well under the top of normal 20%. Wendy I was expecting a result in nmol/l or something similar??
Guess this means we are no longer searching for IAA. Will change title of the thread in a day or two.
 
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are those incisions for other/additional things
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Yes we are 99% sure that those are for the skull supports to ensure there is no movement during the operation. They certainly went in through the roof of the mouth to get the pituitary.
Call from Camilla at 2000 as promised. Titan will remain in ICU for about 2 days more. he is off his fluid drips because he is eating and drinking of his own volition. The hormone replacement therapy started yesterday. Electrolytes are being checked every six hours. Potassium particularly, as shortage can cause oedema in the brain. latest BG down to 7.6 / 137. Titan is happy, wanting head butts constantly. Titan's team is very happy, and beginning to hope for the best. !
 
John Irene and TITAN said:
Yes we are 99% sure that those are for the skull supports to ensure there is no movement during the operation. They certainly went in through the roof of the mouth to get the pituitary.
Call from Camilla at 2000 as promised. Titan will remain in ICU for about 2 days more. he is off his fluid drips because he is eating and drinking of his own volition. The hormone replacement therapy started yesterday. Electrolytes are being checked every six hours. Potassium particularly, as shortage can cause oedema in the brain. latest BG down to 7.6 / 137. Titan is happy, wanting head butts constantly. Titan's team is very happy, and beginning to hope for the best. !
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Whooo!! What a fantastic report! So exciting! Here's to continued healing and progress! :bighug::bighug:
 
Love the BG report! :cool: Isn't that numbers on the AT? If so, bye bye insulin. :woot: Plus the head butts, Titan must be feeling great compared to before.

IAA is just a percentage, so one less thing to worry about. :)
 
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That is a great status report. Thanks for keeping us updated. How interesting they made those skull supports during the operation. I'm also glad to hear that Titan's BG went down so fast. That is really great!
 
Wow, you all have gone through so much! :bighug: I am sorry I am playing catch up. I am so happy he is doing well now!!

sbluhrs said:
The incisions by the ears are interesting. So, they didn't go in through the roof of the mouth or are those incisions for other/additional things?
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Yes I wonder why Shmee and Sofie have to have their whiskers and whole faces shaved.
 
It will be interesting to see BG and insulin numbers over the next few months for the hypophysectomy patients (Shmee, Titan, and Sue's kitty). Exciting and very happy times on this forum!
 
Call today from Camilla at RVC. Titan is out of ICU. Yesterday am shot down to 5 units AMPS c. 7 mmol/l / 126. Yesterday PM shot down to 1 unit and resultant BG up to 27/486. Todays am dose is 5 IU and this pm will be 2.5. It is possible that by end of next week he MIGHT be OTJ !!! That doesn't matter so much, he is responding to the insulin, his doses are falling, and that is a fantastic step forward. He is described as happy and cuddly and head-butty. Thanks to FDMB and to RVC !!!:joyful:
 
That is great to hear his BG numbers and insulin demand is dropping so fast. Also great to hear that Titan is out of ICU and into the normal care unit. Exactly what you and all of us were hoping for.

It takes such dedication to commit to this surgery and for Titan - to get him to the distant clinic. I am glad that it is working out so well.
 
Yesterday's call from Camilla said Titan was constipated and had Been given 3 warm water enemas. He had been good but was now a bit grumpy!! Wonder why ?
We leave home tonight on the slow ferry to England. Car in for a service this morning to prepare for unaccustomed motorway driving.
 
That is a great update. It sounds like Titan is doing very good. His BG seems a bit high, but I suppose there is no guarantee that all his diabetes is Acro-caused. Some could be pancreatic diabetes. Still, that is a low insulin dose so no worries there.
 
We went out for a meal last night and received this email from Camilla
QUOTE
Titan has been doing well today – he no longer feels constipated on abdominal palpation and is eating normally with no further vomiting. He did not require insulin this morning as his blood glucose was 5.2 mmol/l, and it has stayed between 5.2-9.5 mmol/l since then. It will be interesting to see what his blood glucose is this evening, when he would potentially next be due insulin.
Due to his reducing insulin requirement, I do think it would be beneficial to give him one more day in hospital, in case he is on the cusp of no longer requiring insulin (it would be useful to know this before discharging him). Therefore, if it is ok with you, it would be ideal if we could have our “discharge talk” on Friday afternoon/evening, with the aim for him to go home on Saturday morning. Please let me know if this will be difficult for you. UNQUOTE

This is good news although we think we could handle him going off the juice. We just want to get him home. But we will continue to trust their judgement and are trying to rebook the ferry and get an extra night's accommodation.
 
That is a great progress report. Glad to hear Titan will be coming home soon. I hope he can go OTJ too.
 
He is looking alert and ready to come home. I hope you enjoy the ferry ride, I always liked being on a ferry. Good news for Titan!
 
Titan's BG shows an immediate sea of blue with no dose. What a remarkable procedure and nice results. Expensive, but very nice.

I hope Titan does not have followup issues, like Amanda is seeing with Shmee. The loss of appetite seems to be the biggest problem there.
 
Welcome home! That spreadsheet is a great example of dosing after surgery and the huge changes you can see. Looking forward to hearing how he settles in. Those RVC folks are great.

Ferry system here just changed the rules so you can't be in your car on the lower decks. :mad: Annoying if you have a kitty as the "pet" area is barky. Neko was a frequent ferry rider with us. I even did test/feed/shoot once on a ferry.
 
TITAN allowed a rare treat of sleeping on our bed last night, so we could keep an eye on him. Woke at 0230 with six snorty sneezes. None since then. He went outside for a few minutes around 0500. This morning's home BG test was 3.7 / 67 ! Just realised that the notes inserted on the mmol/l spreadsheet don't show on the translated American one. Shame as many timings are explained more clearly in the notes .
 
That is just amazing. Titan went from
11.0 units/dose
to no dose

and now his BG is regulated. Pretty soon, the spreadsheet will barely be used (I hope). Sounds like Titan is getting some cuddly attention at home to help with healing. Glad to hear all continues to go well with his recovery.
 
Yeah, seeing Titan's progress has made me really optimistic concerning Sophie's result. She's up to 17 units of Levemir twice a day. My biggest concern at this point was, in addition to dealing with her travel anxiety, is whether or not I needed to start bringing her dosage level down prior to surgery like Amanda did with Shmee, but it seems that, since AMC will be monitoring her BG levels in a manner similar to what the RVC have done with Titan, I can just keep her where she is and not stress. So great to read all the information that both Shmee's and Titan's message threads have included.
 
I hope it goes well for Sophie too. 17 units/dose is a lot, and Sophie is not even regulated at that level. Leo was at 18 units/dose when he got the SRT - 2 years ago. Now he gets 5 units/day. So not a complete cure like the surgery route.
 
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