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Sorry to write 3 mails but in reading over the 2 email again, I am seeing that they were going to be treating above Luna's left eye, and the tumor is near the right eye, but in the nose cavity. Maybe that is why the left eye is having the symptoms, as it had more treatment and also the nose cavity area. The right eye did not receive the treatment as much even though the tumor is located near it. I could be totally reading this wrong and don't mean to upset you, but to me, it appears that there was left side involvement and going into the nasal cavity but stopping at the right eye itself?
they told me I would have expected side-effects on the right side (where the tumor mainly is) and , possibly, also on the left while the actual situation is:
the left side looks bad ... the right one is totally fine.
I have both the histology and the CT scan results which both say the tumor in in the right nasal cavity+ frontal sinus (a bit of it, in a sort of liquid form).
So I mean... side-effects on the left and only on the left (while the right is ok) seem weird to me and make me think they can might have irrradiated the wrong side.... but even if so (I DO hope not), they would never admit it.
I have a friend who is a vet and knows a doctor from the radiation center in Frankfurt (the oldest center in Europe). I'm gonna send him everything I have and he will let me know if what's happening is possible... 'cause if not... I'm not the kind of person who just accepts such a mistake!!!
HOPEFULLY THERE IS NO MISTAKE... which is what I'm actually praying for.
Thanks to all for your opinion and I will let you know what happens... even because in the email the doctor warned me to be prepared to some hair loss also around the right eye as well... which has not happened yet though.
Thanks to ALL OF YOU again and have a good weekend....
how old was Dash when he was diagnosed? Do you know how old Scout was?
I remember that Tillie was 8 or 8 and a half.
upadate: actually... Luna lost some hair also around the right eye... but the skin under it is fine.
Let's hope for the best. For all of those who are still fighting against this desease and for all those who miss their babies...
Dash was 11 or close to it since I am not 100% sure if he was a year old when I got him. The majority of dogs are over 10 but there have been some as young as 4!
I remember one of Dash's post treatment exams it was about 2 months after. The oncologist sent in an intern to examine him and she looked him all over and kept asking me if he had had his IMRT and I kept telling her yes. When the oncologist came in she said " the owner says he has had his treatment and is finished but I do not see any signs of any side effects" She had this tone like maybe I had not told her the truth as there should be side effects.
I wonder if the doses were different between what Dash and Luna got or if the fact I had Dash on Poly MVA and sprayed his face with Real Willards water everyday prevented any side effects?
I hope Luna's side effects are short lived which since the early ones are to fast growing cells they should be.
I will let some one else explain how to post photos as my computer system is very old so does not support alot of the newer photo programs so I have to load them into photo albums on this website then move them to my post, very time consuming and I know others do it an easier way.
I found this website 6 months ago after my beautiful girl got diagnosed with nasal osteosarcoma. When I heard those words I had no idea of their implication or meaning. I soon realized that they meant I was losing my best friend and my kid was dying. I was devastated! I couldn't believe I was losing my girl at 5 and half years old. Most people don't realize the bond that a person has with their dog, so they can't understand how bad I feel. It's comforting to now that there are other people out there who know how horrible I feel.
My situation started in December with a simple bloody nose, and in two short weeks her whole face blew up. Medication reduced the swelling thankfully. But the prognosis wasn't good. I did the radiation and it worked great at first. No more bleeding for a month or so, but then the blood and discharge started to flow. My bill topped over 8 thousand, and I would've paid whatever I had too, to help her. Things started to change for the worse about a month and half ago, and the doctor prescribed more meds. But my girl was slowing down and I knew the end was near. I went to the vet two weeks ago, and he wanted to put her through a litany of new treatments. All of which would've put great strain on my already stressed out dog. I felt that I didn't want to continue to flood her body with more meds, chemo, and radiation. I felt I would just be doing this for my own benefit, and not for the benefit of my girl. I didn't want my own selfish needs to harm her more. I felt it was selfish of me to keep her going so I could prolong the day I would have to put her down. Does this seem wrong to anyone? The vet made me feel like I was doing something wrong. I've come to the conclusion that all they want is your money, and they don't really care about the dog. I have so many regrets looking back, like maybe I exposed her to something that caused this. I can't tell you how bad I've felt for the last six months. Sunday was a bad day for me. She was in bad shape. I left for a little while to run some errands, and when I returned she was hurting. I laid with her and she passed about an hour later. I think she was waiting for me to return before she passed. She was my girl till the end, and she didn't want to die without her dad being there. I know she's in a better place now, but the pain still remains. I'm crying as I write this. My hope is that maybe this post can help me somehow release some of the pain. I don't have a lot of things in my life, but I had her, and she was a big part of my world. It's hard to envision her not in my life. This is the first night in six years that my baby girl won't be sleeping next to me, and it's a strange feeling. I know they are only animals, and they don't live forever, but I never thought I would lose her so soon. I think this fact makes me feel even worse. To see something so strong and beautiful fall so quick kills me. I want to remember the good times, but the bad times are clouding those memories. I'm sorry if I'm bringing anyone else down, but I needed a place where I could express my thoughts to people who have a semblance of my pain. When I first found this sight I couldn't believe that so many other people are going through the same grief. My only hope is that you guy's situation turn out better than mine. I wish I could've snapped my fingers and make this all go away. The worst part is the end. Bringing her to get cremated only rehashed my emotions. I only hope that the end for her wasn't as bad as it was for me. Hopefully she knows how much I love her, and how much she meant to me, and hopefully she's in a better place where nasal cancer can't go. I'm sorry to ramble on, but I get the feeling that I would be burdening friends and family with my feelings about her. I hope everyone in this forum has better luck than me, and I hope god will spare you and your pets any suffering. You don't realize how comforting this site is to some people. Your posts make some of us feel a little better. Thank you for sharing. I will get over this someday, but for now the wounds are fresh. I will always miss my baby girl. Good Luck to all of you guys. Take solace in knowing that there are people out there who know what you're going through, and they keep you in their prayers.
Hello Everyone,
Again my hectic schedule keeps me from writing every day but as I have said before I still come and read all of your posts to check in on how everyone is doing. Alessia and Luna, I hope you are handling the side effects well as you can and I can understand why you would feel confused with why the side effect would be more prevalent on the less affected side, but I do agree with Jan in the sense that your vet seems to be very thorough ( or is trying to be) with all the questions you have. Cancer is an uncertain thing, there will always be questions and know that you are not wrong for thinking them, or asking them. How is Luna besides that? Is she still eating and playing and being herself? I hope so, and I hope there are some smiles in your days.
Darbi, Our memorial projects are hard on us, because well they are in memory of our sweet pups, not just a regular album to share. I work on mine 1 page at a time and when the tears or pain are too much I stop. I also have looked into volunteering at local animal shelters as I feel like I need to do something more with this painful energy, and of course help animals less fortunate.
DC77,
Welcome and I am so sorry for your loss. If you read previous posts you will see that I lost my 6 year old rottweiler to nasal cancer as well. It was devastating, I lost my best friend. Know that all the feelings you are having are completely normal and it sounds to me that your pup was a very lucky girl to have you as an owner and companion. Please tell us more about your sweet girl, what kind of dog was she? This forum has been such a huge support for me, when Sheldon got sick and now after he has passed. Know that you are not alone in this pain, and even though it hurts like hell, talk about it because it will help, do not hold this inside of you...
DC77, I am sorry to hear about your dog.I think many of us here know how horrible you feel right now. Do not beat yourself up as you are not responsible for her cancer. The world is such a toxic place that unless you were to place your dog in a bubble you really can't control alot of what they are exposed too out there.And lets face it what dog would be happy in a bubble? Chasing bubbles yes but living in one with no smells, NO!
It sounds like you did alot for her and there does come that point in time when one is dealing with cancer where you do decide enough is enough and forgo any more treatment.You were a good friend /dad to her and believe me she knows how much you loved her and cared about her. She was a lucky dog to have an owner like you. Think of all the dogs out there that never have that bond and love of a good owner or for some any owner, sad huh?
I do believe that dogs like people often choose the moment they die and some want us with them yet some do not so you are right she probably did wait for you which makes it somewhat special that she loved you and trusted you so wanted you there while she transitioned to what ever comes next.
You will hurt and people that have never shared that bond with a dog will never really understand what you are going through so don't let any of them tell you," She was just a dog , get over it." The loss of a pet can be just as tramatic maybe even more so then the loss of a human, for some people. Grief is a very personal thing and we all take a different amount of time to come to grips with it and we all do it differently so don't let others tell you how you should be grieving or how long. Someday memories of her will bring smiles not tears.
I myself found that it helped alot just to talk about Dash even just telling funny stories about him as it keeps a part of him alive for me so do feel free to tell us stories about you girl or share photos of her if you need too.
What makes me angry about your post is the fact that your dog was another younger dog. I can understand and even accept older dogs getting this type of cancer as they have spent a life time sniffing all sorts of great things and no doubt have had alot of nasal irritation from it but the younger dogs? I don't get it is there some genetic weakness that is showing up in dogs that is the root of this? Is it being driven by our environment, vaccines, diet..what?
Maybe once UC Davis has done more of its work on decoding the dog genome they will be able to answer some of this.I am proud to say that Dazzle my young silken Windhound who Dash babysat and helped me raise the last 6 months of his life is the breed that is responsible for the dog genome project at UC Davis. They pretty much have the DNA of all the Silken Windhounds world wide which makes doing the genome project possible thanks to alot of very dedicated breeders out there. Hopefully someday cancers and genetic diseases that plague our beloved dogs will one day be understood and either prevented or cured. Until then all we can do is hope and pray.
I wanted to post a picture of my girl. She was a blue-nose pitbull. The breed gets a bad rap, but after twenty years of owning them, that's garbage. Man I'm having a tough time getting over this. Even though I knew this day was coming, it still doesn't make it easier. The main reason I got her was I wanted my older pit to have a friend while I was at work. Also, after the heartache I felt after losing my first dog, I thought the loss of one of them would be tempered with the fact that I still had the other. Now, I'm hit with a perfect storm. My male dog was diagnosed with degenerative brain disease about a year ago, and at the time I said at least I would have my girl to help ease the loss of him. He's losing all his motor functions, but he is still going. His day is coming though. So when I received the news of her condition, I couldn't believe I was having this much bad luck. Its tough enough to lose one, never mind two. The day I found out about her I found this website, and I realized I'm not alone. I don't understand why this is happening to me. These dogs are my world, and it's crumbling before my eyes. I must have done something bad to someone to be punished like this. One thing I could always count on was my girl being there when I got home. She made me look forward to coming home. There are so many memories in this house of her. It's so hard to be here and not have her. Dashdog you really are helping some people cope with this. I can't believe anyone could ever come on her and question your intentions. Keep doing what your doing, cause it help, even if it's just a little. Man I can't wait to start feeling better! When your whole world centers around your dogs, its so hard losing them. I'm glad there's a place I can come and express myself, without feeling like I'm burdening people with my pain. The bound I had with that girl was so strong, and knowing what I know I would do it all over again. She really was an angel, and I feel blessed that I had the opportunity to have her. I will feel better someday, but for now I remain sour. Man I miss her. I will try to continue to post, but every time I hear someone else's story it kills me. I only hope that someday some doctor will come up with something to prevent this. Cancer has no friends, and, unfortunately when it touches you, you find that out the hard way!
Dear DC77, our hearts are all breaking for your loss. Too young, as was said, and Joyce had a young dog, Sheldon, too. My Rocky was older, you miss them no matter the age. And when I will tell someone that he died of nasal cancer, alot have never heard of it. I found this website the 2 days before Rocky passed. Never had a chance to post a message. You did all you could do, and gave your girl every chance available. What is her name? She is so beautiful. I am in a grief group through our Hospice and it does help. Joyce I am still in a standstill with the project. Makes me feel guilty that I cannot start it, but I know that I will. Some days I wish I could turn off my memory as I reply things over and should have done this or that. I know in my heart, I did what I felt was right at the time. Alessia, you and Luna are in our prayers. How are things going with Luna. And sweet Jan and your family, I bless you each time I come here. The support here is wonderful and so needed. Darbi and my Rocky
Jan, I feel your anger about the fact that dogs are dying young from the terrible disease, so unfair, and you wonder why..I took alot of precautions with my shel-dog making sure he had the best i could give him and he still got sick, thats where the guilt sneaks in, wondering if you couldve done something differently but I cant help but think about all that is in our envirnoment that could be so harmful that we dont even know about and use on a regular basis..I am trying to be more aware of the products I use for that very reason.
DC77, What a beautiful girl! Whats her name? I am so sorry that you have lost her..I know thats its hard to believe that others have felt your pain but believe that I truly have felt every emotion you are currently feeling. The sadness, the anger, the guilt, it can really eat you up. The first few days after Sheldon was gone I honestly didnt think I could face the world without him. I still cry everyday and now I cry for you and your pain. Im sure others have told you this but when you are at your worst just remember that your sweet pup isnt suffering anymore...All of our dogs are up in heaven playing and looking down at us..and find comfort knowing how lucky we all are to have our dogs make such an impact on our lives....
Darbi, It is okay to be at a standstill. Do not feel guilty, its natural to struggle with completing these projects as I feel it is further solidifying the reality that our dogs are really gone, that this isnt just a bad dream ( which I so badly wish it was). I too struggle every day with missing Sheldon, I have said before that I really feel like a piece of me is gone. I think of all of you here on a regular basis and hope the pain becomes less as time goes on.
Alessia and Luna, Hope you guys are doing ok! I friend-requested you on facebook.
Also, I posted some pictures in my album of Sheldon so you can see how handsome my rottie really was, I smile through tears when I look at pictures of him..it is bittersweet....
Joyce (Sheldon smiling down)
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... the right one is totally fine.
Thanks!
