cushings and lymphoma

[peggy]

Hi all...I'm new to this forum but have already found it to be a great place for encouragement and information. I have a 7yo pit mix diagnosed with cushings almost 2 years ago. She takes vetoryl and has been doing really well.4 weeks ago she was diagnosed with lymphoma and started the CHOP chemo protocol. The problem is she can't take predisone because of her cushings and the chemo makes her very tired. Is there anyone out there dealing with both diseases that might be able to share there experience with me? Any wisdom is very much appreciated. I want my baby to feel better and be happy. Thanks everyone!

[Harley PoMMom]

Hi and welcome to you and your girl! Gosh I am sorry your sweet girl is going through so much right now.

I would think that the treatment for the Cushing's would be put on the back burner right now and the focus would be the lymphoma, which would mean the prednisone could be given.

I do believe that we have had a few members whose furbaby has gone through both illnesses, and hopefully they will be along soon, one that I can think of off the top of my head is Debbie, so I will PM her and let her know you are here, ok?

In the meantime I am sure many people will be by to say hello and to welcome you.

Hugs, Lori

[peggy]

Hi Lori, Thanks for your kind words and for replying so quickly! Noomi's vet did say we could cut back on the vetoryl and it would increase her cortisol so we are trying that today. She's responding really well to the chemo and her lymph nodes are almost back to normal...plus her blood work is perfect...so we are all a bit perplexed as to why she has no energy. We're even postponing the next treatment until she feels better. She does take anti-nausea meds for 5 days after each treatment so we wonder if that could be a factor as well. I just want to do everything i can for her...she is the sweetest, most loving dog ever, and before I adopted her 4 years ago, she was horrifically abused--beaten and starved down to 38lbs. (She's 74lbs now). And yet, she LOVES people...all people. I just feel she deserves the best life possible...i need to give her that. Any information from anyone is so welcome. Thank you so much...this is a scary ride.

[lulusmom]

Hi Peggy and a big welcome to you and Noomi.

One of our member's Debbie, is intimately familiar with Lymphoma as her beloved Barkley was diagnosed with it. Debbie had an epidural done today and it's very uncomfortable for her to sit for very long so she wanted me to tell you that she will post something tomorrow. In the meantime, she asked that I refer you to Barkley's thread in the In Loving Memory subform so that you can get a good idea of the journey Debbie and Barkley took together, from the beginning of their life together to Barkley's passing. I have provided a link to that thread below:

http://www.k9cushings.com/forum/showthread.php?t=345&highlight=barkley

I'm so very sorry for the circumstances that brought you here but I'm glad you found us.

Glynda

[goldengirl88]

I too am so sorry for what you and your baby are going thru. I would echo what Lori said. I hope you can get things turned around for your baby, I will say a prayer for you both. Blessings
Patti

[StarDeb55]

Welcome to both you & Noomi, Peggy! I'm awfully sorry to hear that Noomi has been hit with the double whammy of Cushing's & lymphoma. I hope by now you have had time to read Barkley's history on his "In Loving Memory" thread. I will go into a little more detail about his lymphoma journey.

The first thing I can tell you is that Barkley's chemo was only a single agent protocol, doxyrubicin. He was given 5 cycles of this drug about 3 weeks apart. At 13 when he was diagnosed, I felt that the CHOP protocol was to lengthy to put him through, along with the costs involved. If he had been younger at diagnosis, chances are we would have gone with the CHOP. At this point, the lymphoma needs to be the priority, Cushing's should go on the back burner. Under normal circumstances, you are absolutely correct about not giving prednisone, but I'm not sure why there seems to be hesitation about giving pred as part of an on-going chemo regimen. Perhaps I'm missing something? The only thing I can tell you about pred usage in relation to lymphoma is that it can be used alone, which can buy a pup maybe 3 months or so. The huge problem with pred being used this way is that once the pup has a relapse, the tumor has become refractory to any other chemo. B's oncologist, internal med vet, derm vet, & myself had to priortize treatment of his multiple issues which meant the lymphoma was always first, Cushing's second, & anything else was 3rd. I really don't recall that B had too much trouble with nausea or vomiting, but I was given anti-nausea meds as a precaution which I think I used once. You will have to forgive me as it's been around 10 years since I took this journey, so my memories aren't real sharp any more.

You may have already been told this by your oncologist, but I think it's important enough to repeat. It's imperative that you check Noomi's lymph nodes on a regular basis. If you don't know how to do this, insist that your onco vet or his/her techs teach you. This is how I caught a relapse early. The other thing is if you note any change in Noomi's behavior, no matter how minor it seems to be, bring this to the attention of the oncologist ASAP. To show you how important this is, B had been doing well after his chemo was finished. We only went to the oncologist for monthly rechecks. I could not put my finger on what exactly was wrong with B, but I was convinced there was something. I could not feel any enlarged lymph nodes so I was at a loss. I was concerned enough that I moved up the monthly recheck with oncology. His oncologist came out & told me that she had gone over B with a "fine tooth comb", & initially could find nothing that triggered a red flag for her. She, also, said that she knew that I absolutely knew that boy so well, that something must be going on for me to bring him in. She went back over him, & finally found a pea-sized lymph node in behind one of his knees, this is how his first relapse was detected.

Chemo bought B another 20 months with an excellent quality of life, so there is hope that Noomi can have a good long remission.

I have e-mailed another member who also has experience with lymphoma, asking her to stop by & talk to you. I'm hoping she should be by in the next few days.

Please keep us posted as to how Noomi is doing.

Debbie

PS- I knew I forgot something. Cushing's depresses a pup's immune system. With the lymphoma & chemo, Noomi's immune system is really been with a triple whammy. It's nothing any of B's vets ever told me, but I thought it was simply common sense, to keep B's exposure to other dogs or animals to a minimum to stop him for catching any type of infection from somewhere else.

[Trish]

Hi Peggy - I know this is totally unrelated... first it is my brothers CAT :) But Timmy got intestinal lymphoma and he lived 2 1/2 years receiving intermittent chemo. He was getting on too, he died when he was 16 not too long ago. Once the lymphoma was controlled Mr Timms had a great quality of life! Although he did not have cushing's to complicate things. So I just wanted to let you know that animals can do chemo really, really well and hopefully together with the advice from your vets and here your Naomi will do the same! :)

[peggy]

Hi Debbie,
I read Barkley's story and it was heartbreaking, but heartwarming as well. Someone once told me that you can't be sad because a loved one is gone from your life, but thankful that they were in your life. How lucky you were to have each other in your lives.

The information in your reply is awesome, especially about learning to feel the lymph nodes. What a great idea. I'm going to do that tomorrow. And you can be sure I won't ever write off little changes to "just a bad day." I'm fortunate in that her doc really makes himself available to me. When i call, he will always get on the phone with me within seconds, without fail. That's a big deal.

You and everyone else in the forum have been so kind and so informative...I can't thank you enough. And any additional thoughts, tips, you or anyone can think of to share with me, are so appreciated. When I read all the statistical data it just makes me sad, but hearing these quality of life stories gives me hope. Thank you for the hope.

[molly muffin]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

I can't help with the lymphoma, since I don't have any knowledge specific, like Debbie and Trish do, but cushings I know, and it is the least important I think right now, with lymphoma taking priority. Cushings she can live with, but lymphoma needs to be kicked in the tush. Once that is kicked then you could look at the cushings again. That is just my thought on the situation.

I'm so glad you rescued her and she has found her true love home.

Sharlene and molly muffin

[Trish]

I don't know much about lymphoma to be honest, just know Timmy had it and did really well. His chemo tablets and I am not even sure what they are worked really well!! Just wanted to spread the hope that it is manageable :)

[bkdice]

Hi Peggy! I'm so sorry you're facing lymphoma on top of cushings. I faced the same thing with my Niko. He was almost 16 when the lymphoma popped up. Debbie is the one that encouraged me to treat, and we did. We cut back on his lysodren, so his natural cortisol would rise, as we didn't want to do any pred. We did a single agent protocol, mostly due to his age. He got 8 cancer free months with only a few bad days in there.

There is a great support group - LymphomaHeartDogs.
FB https://www.facebook.com/groups/LymphomaHeartDogs/
There have been a few other cush pups there too. I've seen various dogs live years after DX, so keep hope alive :) It will be a roller coaster!

They helped me so much. Please feel free to email me anytime too - skyhighb@gmail.com