Help -Adrenalectomy/Pheochromocytoma (Pippin has passed)

[DOGFR13ND]

Hi, I am new to this forum. I have a dog who we love dearly that had an adrenalectomy last week. The tumour results have come back as suspected - a Pheochromocytoma. This was only discovered by accident. One of our other two dogs ran into her on the beach, chasing a ball. He is epileptic and does not have a great deal of control over his actions because of the meds he is on. Unfortunately it triggered off a haematoma, and she was in great pain. Until that time she was not ill at all. In fact, all though she is just 10 she was running about like a 2 year old a couple of hours before, and also jumping over 4 foot walls without any hesitation.

Although she appeared to recover from the operation initially, she is now being sick intermittently. Her operation was 10 days ago. The vets have not been able to decide what is causing the sickness. We are in the UK and very little appears to be known about this tumour. We have been told that it is a very rare type and that she also has a very rare version of it.

The latest possibility has been to monitor her heart again over night tonight for any arrythmia.The vet has said that if that should be the case, there is very little that can be done, as the tumour has probably settled in another place and still causing adrenaline excess.

The hospital that she has been at is excellent, but they have very little experience with this kind of tumour.

I do not want to give up on her as inbetween times she appears to be quite lively from what I am being told. Unfortunately we live a long way from the hospital and they are currently keeping her in, although she did come home for the one night but was very sick and it was decided that it would be best to keep her in the hospital. However, if there is nothing to help then I feel we must let her go as I do not want her to go through any more pain.

If anybody has any advice, I would be most thankful, as I feel that so little is known about this particular type of tumour in this country.

[StarDeb55]

We have one member who is dealing with a pheo in her mini-schnauzer. I will send a PM to her so she can offer an advice she has. It may be a couple of hours before she can respond. Don't give up hope just yet, Kim may have some helpful insight for you.

Debbie

[lulusmom]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

I don't have a lot of time but read your story and wanted to try to help. We don't see pheos very often here but we do have a few members who can share their experience with you. Hopefully, they'll be by soon.

I have done a fair amount of layman's research on pheos and do know that UC Davis Veterinary Teaching Hospital did an eleven year study on pheochromocytomas in dogs. Chances are your vet/surgeon could gain a lot of information there. They should contact Dr. Edward C Feldman, Professor Department of Medicine and Epidemiology. I'm pretty sure your vets will know who Dr. Feldman is. His contact info can be found at http://faculty.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/faculty/ecfeldman/

Here is a link to an abstract from the study I mentioned above:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9348493

I am also attaching a PDF file entitled Canine Pheochromocytoma: Diagnosis and Management written by Drs. Lori G. Locke-Bohannon and Glenna E. Mauldin or Louisiana State University. You will notice that the first reference listed in this paper is Dr. Edward C. Feldman. Dr. Richard Nelson is also listed and he too is a Professor at UC Davis.

628

I hope this helps.

Glynda

[frijole]

Hello and welcome from the mom of a pheo pup!

You are right - there isn't alot of information available and I will share as much as I can remember and please feel free to ask me as many questions as you want! I am here to help you learn from my story... it has been a long journey and hopefully I can save you time and lots of money!

First off - My dear sweet Annie has been living with a pheo for at least two years now. It took me a good year to get a firm diagnosis. She was misdiagnosed with cushings. Her primary symptoms have remained the same throughout the ordeal - and it confused many vets.

Pheos are not always active. So when they are inactive your dog will act like a normal happy dog. When they are active the dog will sometimes have full body tremors (as if cold), she quits eating, her back legs give out (same dog was running like a pup few hours before).

Pheos emit adrenaline. I went to a forum so I could read what human beings described as their symptoms/pain so I could better understand what my dog goes through. They shared that there is a surge of blood that goes from their hearts to their head and they can actually FEEL their veins expand. They get migraines/headaches and are totally exhausted afterwards. They get feverish and their blood pressure rises.

This really explained some things with my dog. She is totally normal and happy as a lark until the tumor is active. When it is active she refuses food despite the fact that you can tell she is starving. She sniffs the food and appears to really want to eat it but after sniffing it she looks as if the smell of it makes her sick. To make matters worse, what she eats one day she'll be repulsed by the next. I have dozens of types of food (canned, kibble, home made) available at all times.

As I mentioned, she also loses strength in her hind legs during these episodes and did from the beginning... it has gotten progressively worse but she still can run like a pup at times and stumble and fall during episodes. She can no longer tolerate steps - even going down two of them. I carry her. But once in the yard she runs around.

A couple of other things - I believe that she has some cushings like symptoms (hair loss/thinning being the main one) because the tumor has caused her sex hormones to be elevated. I treat this by giving her melatonin from the health food store. 3 mgs in the morning and 3 mgs at night. If she is particularly hyper I increase it.

Her stomach growls in the lower intestine area. You can hear it and feel it. I believe it is due to gas creeping into the stomach as a result of the adrenaline. My dog had an endoscopy and had blood and pus filled sores (thousands upon thousands of them) lining her esophagus from her mouth to her stomach and into her stomach. The guy that did the test at the University had never seen anything like it in all his years (over 25) doing endoscopies. For this reason I do two things - I give my dog Pepcid AC (cut into small pcs-you can google it to determine the amt for your dog) and I give it twice a day.

I recently started giving her Slippery Elm Bark (holistic health food stores) and it has really helped her. Sometimes I think these lesions keep her from wanting to eat. Slippery Elm Bark (SEB) works wonders on ulcers! It works with gas. It helps diarrhea/constipation etc... so it soothes the tummy. I make a batch every week. One cup of water and a TBS or so of the powder. Boil it for 10 mins (simmer once it boils). Then put in container in the frig. IT thickens. I give 2 TBS on top of her food with each meal.

I also obviously give her high blood pressure meds. The episodes come and go - you can tell she starts breathing heavy. One time I thought she was in cardiac arrest it was so bad. But it ceased and she was then normal.

Lastly I take her weekly for acupuncture treatments. They focus on her hind legs, her appetite, and keeping her calm (the adrenaline factor). She loves it and comes out like a new dog every week.

If you go to my screen name (frijole) and look at my profile you will see photos. You will see what she looked like before she was sick and photos of the last year. You will see that she has lost a great deal of weight. She was 17-18 lbs and now I fight to keep her above 12 lbs. She is literally skin and bones. Her stomach is swollen as a result of the tumor and its affect on organs.

You will also see in the photos pictures of her during an episode where she lays with her eyes closed and pictures taken later where she is happy and all smiles.

It has been a real roller coaster ride. But I will say this much - my dog is very happy and is still loving life. Its like she doesn't even know she is sick. Absolutely amazing when you look at her photos.

Please please keep me posted and I will help any way I can. There are few that have been down this path. I send you and your dear dog love, strength, and warm thoughts. Kim

[Skye]

We might be on a similar boat you and me......Left adrenal gland tumor not in vena cava not vascular size is that of a grape small green grape, 1 cm
she is scheduled for surgery Nov 28th. I am seriously hesitant at going through with it as I have been trying to research and health and longeity afterwards. Not sure what that compares to via not doing it. Hers is inactive from what we know. It was found because her blood work from routine exam was elevatued and I panic and pushed for more tests and with the amazing ppl here found guidance. yes very very very rare. Here to help support, dont give up!!! you have come this far!

[Cyn719]

Glad you found this forum and I know you will find alot of answers here - Sending you and you little one love hugs strength support good thoughts and prayers

[DOGFR13ND]

Thank you all so much for your replies and thoughts. I will be speaking to our vet this morning. I will pass on the links to and from this forum. As I said they have very little precedence to go with this case.

It has been an extremely hard couple of weeks. As she was in such extreme pain as the tumour had ruptured after the collision with the other dog, we had very little choice other than to operate.

[frijole]

Look at it like this - even though it was a freak occurrence -your vets figured it out which is a good thing. The more you read about this type of tumor the more you will find that the reason so little is known about it is because most dogs are either never diagnosed or are diagnosed after they pass. :( Wishing you the best, Kim

[DOGFR13ND]

Have spoken to our vet a couple of times today. The ECG monitor over night showed no arrythmias. There was a very slight raise in blood pressure and another slight problem, which may not be significant he said but which could either be the very early stages of degenerative heart disease or possibly as a result of the effects of the adrenaline from the tumour before it was removed.

To cut a very long story short, they are putting her on heart tablets over the weekend and also on a halter monitor, to see if there is anything shown when (and if) she is sick. If there is nothing shown she will have an endoscopy at the beginning of next week. It worries me putting her through so much, and yet in between the sickness episodes, she appears to be quite lively. I do not feel that I can give up on her yet.

It is a very worrying time, and I am also beginning to realise how frustrating this is for the vets. She is obviously a very confusing case! This really would appear to be a very rare problem.

Thanks again for all your replies and thoughts.

[lulusmom]

Hi and thank you for the update. It sounds like you have wonderful veterinary professionals tending to your precious dog but if they are still confused, I do hope they reach out to UC Davis for help. There is nothing to lose by making a phone call.

Continued positive thoughts and prayers for you and your baby.

Glynda

[DOGFR13ND]

I wanted to update this for anyone who may google pheochromocytoma in the future, as it is fairly rare. This was one of the only sites I could find where people had experienced this particular problem with their pups. It was a great help to me at the time.

Until last Sunday, she lived a really happy apparently painfree time. She enjoyed life to the full as any normal healthy dog would have. We made the right decision completely, although it cost a great deal of money over and above the insurance payout, but that 9 months was worth every penny and more.

Just after Pippin was ill last year her brother , who belonged to my mum, died suddenly within 24 hours of a brain tumour. Unfortunately it would appear that probably this was genetic, as exactly the same thing happened to Pippin on Sunday, and she was gone within a few hours.

If anybody is ever in the sad position of deciding about an adrenalectomy for a dog suffering from an adrenal gland cancer, please remember my story. No words can ever express the gratitude I feel to the vets who gave me Pippin back for those extra 9 months of quality life.

It is my strong belief, and my vets that the two cancers were unrelated, although we declined tests to investigate further - I could not bear to think of any further invasion to her. However, during the 9 months she had a couple of checkups and each time she was found to be completely recovered from the original adrenal cancer, and the vets were extrmely pleased about her.

This site is a wonderful site for owners who are coping with Cushing's in their much loved four legged friends, and long may it continue to support you all. My thoughts and prayers go out to you all who suffer along with your pets.

[Jenny & Judi in MN]

thank you for coming back to let people know. I'm so sorry for your loss but glad you got an additional 9 months. Judi

[Squirt's Mom]

I am so sorry to hear about Pippin. It is never easy to lose one of our babies but after a successful adrenal surgery this is especially hard to bear, I know. I am just so sorry.

Pippin's name has been added to the In Loving Memory thread for 2012 where she will always be remembered and honored by her family here at k9c.

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3918

Please know we are here for you if you wish to talk and when you are ready, we would love to share in the memories of her life with you if you would like to post a tribute or memorial to your sweet girl in the In Loving Memory section.

Our deepest condolences,
Leslie, Squirt, Trinket, Brick, Tasha, and our Angels, Ruby and Crystal

[addy]

Thank you for telling us about Pippin and sharing your story. It is so hard to lose our fur balls and my heart goes out to you. I am thankful you and Pippin had nine wonderful months and I hope those memories sustain you during this time of mourning.

We come together on this forum to share in the good times and bad, the ups and downs. Please come back as often as you need to. We are always here and willing to listen.

Much love
Godspeed Pippin

[frijole]

Ah I am so sorry to hear this news. I really appreciate you coming back as I'm one of the 'pheo moms'. It means alot that our stories helped you out. Glad you enjoyed a great final chapter with Pippin. Again, thanks for coming back to update us. RIP dear sweet Pippin. Kim

[steveds]

I am so sorry to hear about your loss of Pippin. I wish you all the best. Stephen

[molly muffin]

I am so sorry for the lost of your darlin Pippin. Every day is a precious one with these little ones and I'm glad you had an extra 9 months with Pippin.
Hugs,
Sharlene

[Bo's Mom]

So sorry to hear of your loss of your dear Pippin. Our thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

[lulusmom]

I'm so sorry for your loss. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

Godspeed, sweet Pippin.

[apollo6]

I am so sorry to hear about the lose of you Pippin. A part of us goes with them. may your baby be at peace.
Hugs Sonja and Apollo

[DOGFR13ND]

Thanks for all the kind thoughts. Please continue to give one another support. When our pups develop some disease such as Cushings, a lot can be gained from other people's experiences, practically and emotionally.

Take care of yourselves and all your pups.