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Thank you for asking about Charlie. I haven't figured out how to get notices by email of new posts (any help is appreciated ;^)
Charlie is doing well. He is 2 weeks post radiation now and side effects are minimal. He had a teary eye for many months (his first symptom) and it was making a little bald spot on his face. That seems to be the only place affected. It looked a little sore, so I put ointment on it and it healed right up. His eye still leaks and hair is gone there, but it isn't sore looking anymore. He is sleeping well at night now and breathing through both nostrils! Amazing.
I took him for a walk the other day and we ran for a bit (because my other dog Blue was having such fun). Later that day, Charlie became very tucked and hunched. I was afraid it was a twisted stomach, so I had him looked at, but his tummy was fine. It was probably muscle soreness from the run. Or, I thought, since he has never gotten sore before like that, I thought maybe he had a seizure or accident while I was at work where he injured his back. It didn't seem to be worse on one side or the other. So I am not sure what happened, but he does seem to feel better now.
He gets kind of spacy now and then and is sleeping more than before. But it is cute because he often dreams and moves his little paws. He dreams more than before. He is also doing silly things like climbing in my lap and on to my bed (which I always wanted him to do, but he would only rarely, now he is doing it all the time.) He insists that he go everywhere with me and won't take "no" for an answer. He is so cute. I am happy to have him along when ever I can.
I give my dogs 2 fish oil capsules, one NuVet supplement, Glucosamine/Chondroiten spray, wet and dry food (Natural Balance). Charlie receives 2 benedryl, and a tramadol if he needs them, which seems to be pretty rare.
He seems to do much better without pain medicine. He gets bad side effects (digestive problems, increased breathing difficulties, he becomes restless, and has personality dullness.) He just seems a lot better without it, at least at the moment.
I feel very fortunate that I was able to give Charlie the radiation. Although it was just one treatment, it has helped tremendously. I kept telling the doctor I just wanted him to feel better and be able to sleep. And she just kept saying back, "Radiation will help him feel better" It was hard to believe at the time, but was very true.
hi i have just been reading through everyons experience with nasal tumours. My dog Sandy has suffered reverse sneezind for a couple of years . I never thought that it would cause a problem but a couple of months ago i noticed very mild blood stained saliva and then again approx 2 weeks ago.
I took sandy to the vets and they took her blood which came back ok. sandy then went for xrays and a endocopy and a mass was found at the back of her left nostril going down to the back of her throat.. biopsys were taken and i should get the results tomorrow . I am still hoping that it could be a polyp??
Charlie's mom - I'm glad to read that Charlie is breathing better and that the radiation provided relief so quickly for him.
Sandy's mom- I hope for yours and Sandy's sake that it is a polyp too. Keep us posted, please.
We've had some problems lately with Hardee, and I am worried. He had 2 big days of swimming, etc. the last 2 days here in AZ at a lake. Last night while trying to sleep, Hardee's head kept twitching and he'd do little head shakes, like something was causing him pain and he was trying to shake it off. I fear the tumor is growing, maybe into the brain. He's on 2 Tramadol per day, and I think I'll increase it to 3 per day. It is not his ears, at least I don't think. They don't smell yeasty, and I put ear cleaner in them after each swimming episode.
We are on our way to TX, but we'll CT scan when we get back. Knowing the outcome now won't change anything, so we will continue on. We hope like hell this is not our last adventure with our boy. He is 13 months post cyberknife radiation, and we just stopped chemo the end of June. Maybe it is something else, but I do not have a good feeling about this.
Keep your fingers and paws crossed for us. I'll be thinking of all your precious pups.
Charlie is doing really well. He had head twitches on one side of his head and I rubbed on his head and it helped. It lasted about 10 minutes. I was starting to get worried. But he has actually doing really well. He is very energetic, and happy and he sometimes acts like a puppy.
His nose is going bald and it is very cute.
It makes me wonder if I should have done the full radiation treatment. He just seems so healthy right now. I am appreciating every day we have.
Hi Marilyn- How coincidental that you write just when I was going to post an update.
Before I write about Hardee, I want to say how glad I am that Charlie is doing so much better. It's so nice to read good news! It's human nature to question our decisions, but you made the best decision you could at the time for Charlie. I'm a huge "what if" person, but I have been trying to accept the decisons I have made at the time.
Hardee lost most of the hair on his face, down his neck, on top of his head, etc. from Cyberknife. He still (over a year later) has some bald areas, but they are minimal, and we just don't care. I'm sure Charlie looks just as handsome as Hardee does!
It's another coincidence that you write about the one sided head twitching because we are having this very same thing happen to Hardee. It's so strange, and we don't know what to make of it.
I'll write the good news first. Hardee passed his highest level water test in Texas. For an explanation about his water test, please see my blog. I just wrote a blog entry about it just yesterday. Kicking Cancer's Ass For Hardee: Tues., Oct. 11, 2011 - Courier Water Dog I hope the link works. Hardee really is an exceptional dog, especially considering everything he has been through and is currently going through.
Now for our not-so-good news. We started having some issues with Hardee's health while we were traveling and on the road for 2 weeks associated with the TX water trial. We were going to leave from TX and head straight to San Diego for another CT scan. Then the problems stopped, so we drove the 1400 miles back home instead.
Since we've been home (almost a week now), we've had some other issues crop up. Issues like panting which I thought could be pain, so I increased his Tramadol which didn't help. He also didn't want to put his head down to sleep. He kept raising his head up, almost pointing his snout to the ceiling, and gagging more than normal, etc. I spent most of yesterday googling trying to come up with answers. I was reading about metastisis to the lymph nodes and lungs, and suddenly it struck me that maybe his neck/jaw lymph nodes were swollen and causing the above symptoms. I checked and sure enough his lymph nodes were swollen. I fear the cancer has spread to his lymph nodes.
We took him in to a regular vet (a friend) today because Hardee's oncologists are 350+ miles away. I had her aspirate the lymph node (right side bgger than the left, and I don't know if there is a correlation or not, but Hardee's nasal cancer started in his right passage) late this afternoon. Now we wait for the pathology report to come back.
We've also had some problems with Hardee since we got home around 5:30 pm. He didn't want to wake up when getting him out of his crate when we got home. In fact he scared me to death when I couldn't rouse him with my voice or rubbing and petting, and then I had to go to shaking. He might have gotten too much sedation or she didn't give him all the reversal drug because 6 hours later we are still having trouble. His heart rate is very slow and irregular. His breathing is very fast. He is incontinent to urine, and he's drooling and vomited once. I've been on the phone with my vet friend all night. I gave Hardee an odansetron (Zofran) that I had on hand (anti-nausea drug left over from our chemo days). It seems to have helped settle his stomach. The rest of the signs I see I can contribute to the effects of the sedative, except the irregular heart rhythm, and that has me worried. I know his heart is weakened from chemo, but I've never known about an arrhythmia before with Hardee.
I probably shouldn't have had her sedate him for the aspiration, but when he gets nervous or upset from different treatments (especially having a needle jabbed into a lymph node under your jaw), his blood pressure rises and it has set off nose bleeds before that have been hard to get a handle on. Anyway, I thought if we sedated first, it would be better for him. I'll be staying up with him tonight, watching him like a hawk, trying not to worry.
If this cancer has spread, then what Hardee did to pass his water test a little over a week ago is even more exceptional. Some might not agree with me, but I am convinced that letting Hardee still compete and train for agility and water (both his faves), obedience and rally has kept him going. The only thing he can no longer do is tracking. He lives life to the fullest, loves to work, and would not be content sitting on the sofa waiting to die.
If you can, please keep good thoughts for Hardee that the pathology comes back with nothing, and that this is just a silly infection to recover from with antibiotics. I wish you all happy, quality time with your babies with loads of fun, and tons more time!
Jen - That sounds scary. I hope Hardee is doing better. I think it is wonderful that you kept him competing. I would think it would give him a reason to keep going (fighting-so to speak). I hope good news comes back. When did you start noticing his head twitching?
I have to say, this whole thing has really brought me back to thinking about where and with who I want to spend my time. My fur babies give me instant joy and lasting love. While I wouldn't say I was ignoring them before, I have seen the dog's happiness increase with the amount of time I am spending with them. It is very satisfying.
I have battled depression a few times with my current dogs (they are 10, 11 and 11). During those times, I would ignore them or get mad at them or leave them outside all day. Yet, they still were there when I needed a hug. Charlie likes to lick my tears. Now that I have been doing better, I feel better about how I take care of them and the amount of time I spend with them and the stuff we do. I was very focused on my girls when they were little, so this is a similar feeling. And I feel like I am doing something good. I have given lifetime homes to them. Anyway, I am just really enjoying this time, and making sure everyone gets some special attention (Maddy now gets accupuncture for her arthritis- which she loves!).
All you have done for Hardee is amazing. And he understands it. I know Charlie does. Let us know how Hardee is doing and thank you for being such a support on this forum. I am keeping him and your family in my thoughts.
hi everyone
i hve just returned from a weeks holiday in eygpt where i have spent the time reading all 160 pages of the posts.
it is so sad that so many dogs are suffering from this horrible nasal cancer(especially as it is meant to be rare )
I rescued Sandy from spain and she was approx 15months old when she arrived with me in the u.k, she is a galgo which is a spainish hunting dog( the spainish use them for hunting and then basically hang them when the hunting season is finished).
I also have a chocalate lab and my dogs are my life and sandy has a very special place in my heart.
Sandy begun reverse sneezing about a year ago, i took her to see the vet who said that it was nothing to worry about but if it gets worse she could have some anti-inflammatory tabs, i took sandy to another vet for a second opinion and again was told the same.??
Sandies reverse sneezing continued on/off and antibiotics and anti.inflammatory tabs were used.
Approx four months ago my Daughter noticed watery blood staining on her bed but i just dismissed it and then again just over a month ago. I took sandy to the vets on this accasion just thinking that it was due to inflammation from her reverse sneezing!!! She was booked in on the 15 september2011 for xrays/trach wash and a endoscope.
The vet rang me and said that there was a mass of 4-5cm in her left nasal passage growing towards the back of her soft palate.The biopsy came back as inflammatory cells containing immature spindle cells and a MRI scan was advised.
Sandies MRI results came back as showing a mass from the front of her left nasal cavity right back into her sinuses, just beginning to erode the bone leading into the right side of her nose measuring 5inches?????????
The MRI was sent off to a specialist(again more waiting time)..I was then told that it was a spindle cell sarcoma.
I told the vet that i wanted the best trt. Surgery wasnt a option as i was told that they couldnt find a surgeon who was willing to try plus the risk of haemorrhage.
I am taking sandy on a 7hr round trip on Monday for a consultation with a radiation oncologist regarding radiation.?? I think they may do a ct scan and more biopsies as the previous one wasnt conculsive?? does anyone have any ideal what may be the next step???
Meanwhile i have been feeding sandy on white meat?fish green vegatables cottage cheese and flaxseed oil capsules with a handful of supplements .
There has only been one other accasion where bloodstaining was visible and a small amount of discharge.. Yesterday her breathing has got worse and she is beginning to mouthbreath.
I am praying that it will still be in stage 1 and maybe pallitive radiation could be a option ( i think they use a 3d radiation machine) not sure if this is the same as IMRT or cyberknife??
I am thankful to have found this blog and special thanks to Jan/dashdog who has been a inspiration to me. Thinking of all the doggies out there battling this horrible thing and to all the owners of our beloved friends. Please any advise or just anyone to hear my venting is greatly appreciated..
Wow reading all the posts must have been like some very sad novel with all the good byes that have been said over the past few years.
I am so sorry to hear that Sandy joins the ranks here while it is a great group of people it is not a group one wants to belong too because it means you are dealing with nasal cancer
If they do cyberknife or IMRT they may want a CT as I am not sure an MRI can be used the same way as a CT to figure out the angles the beam hits at, they do all sorts of histograms etc so that the tumor is targeted. We did a full scan of Dash as if the cancer was in his lungs or brain I probably would have not done all I did but with Dash it was caught very early as he did not even have any bones that had been eroded, He had adenocarcinoma as many here did so I am not sure how Spindle Cell CA responds to radiation or how aggressive that form is. Dash was started on Piroxicam before he started radiation
.Dash's treatment lasted 5 days so since you have a 7 hr trip you may either be leaving Sandy for treatment or staying in that area as that would be too much driving, mine was only a 45 minute trip ( each way ) and by day 5 I was exhausted as it was in the evenings.
I have to say I have no regretts as the IMRT did buy Dash some very good quality time,I just wish it had been a better year as that was the year we got hit with 3 BIG wildfires so all the smoke in the air would reek havoc and cause inflammation and set him up for infections. But he had a great life after the IMRT. As much as it all hurt and loosing him was sad as he was my buddy I have to admit some good came out of it as I have some fantastic friends from this site that I would have never known had it not been we all had dogs with nasal cancer and one of them even helped me by pulling Chaos ( my puppy) from a high kill shelter in Texas being she lived near the shelter and then I flew to Texas from California and got her and got to finally meet LuAnn and it made my belief that things happen for a reason even stronger. Good things can come out of great saddness.
I will send prayers and positive thoughts Sandy's way and hope they can help her breathe easier so she has a better quality of life. Keep us posted. Hugs to you as I know this is hard, Jan
I believe the cyberknife and IMRT is also the same as what Colorado State University refers to as Stereotactic radiation. That is what Charlie received.
I am having fears now, because he is starting to sneeze and breath noisily again (already!?) I talked to the docs and they put him back on Clindimycin and Meloxicam (he couldn't tolerate Peroxicam). There doesn't seem to be any change and I fear I should have done the three treatments.
I will talk to them again this coming week and see if he can still get his other two radiation treatments, or how they want to proceed. He was doing so good!
Sandy's mom - Charlie also had adenocarcinoma, so I don't know about spindle cell. But there is a lot of research going on for dog cancers and studies that you may be able to participate in, if there are any in your area. Originally, we weren't going to treat Charlie and then his breathing got so difficult that he was struggling to breath when trying to sleep. He lost his appetite, and his energy went down. By the time we got to CSU for radiation treatment, he was really struggling, but as long as he was panting (mouth breathing) he was fine. But very very tired. The radiation cleared his breathing within the week, so he could sleep again, and continued clearing for another four weeks until it just recently started sounding clogged again. His tumor was massive on the CT scan (like twice the size of his brain). I was told he would have seizures, but I didn't realize the breathing issue would get so bad before then. I just couldn't let Charlie die for lack of sleep. My advice to you would be to keep asking questions and don't believe everything you hear. I heard radiation was too hard on dogs (but I believe that usually the older radiation). I also heard they couldn't treat him fully if the bone separating the brain from the nasal area was already encroached upon, but apparently that isn't true either. I got my best advice from this forum and from CSU.
hi jan thanks for responding it grt to know that you are still out there and grt to here you have a new addition to (chaos) does he/she live up to the name??
Yes it was like reading a novel with ups and downs fear hope and sadness with a few bad characters which i wont mention in which you handled very well.
I am hoping that the spindle cell sarcoma is still at stage 1 as i have read that if it is more advanced then it doesnt respond good to radiation?
VRCC where i am taking sandy tomorrow has a multi slice ct scanner and a linear accelerator 6 million volt machine?? does this sound the same as imrt ?? if Sandy is viable for palliative radiation i read that it is four trt over 2 days and repeated every 4 weeks..in which i would find accomadation and be with her.
thanks again for still being out there.
Jules/sandy
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spindle cell sarcoma
