Dmmetler Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 I noticed my 14 yr old kitty was licking her lips a lot, and I took her to the vet this morning. She has a good sized oral tumor right behind her front top teeth. The vet did an X-ray and doesn't see other tumors, so he thinks that it's either benign or hasn't spread yet, and he did a needle biopsy which is going to the veterinary pathologist for diagnosis. (He did look at it and says he doesn't see obvious malignancies, but doesn't want to say anything definitive at this point. Having said that, this practice is a veterinary oncology practice as well as a general vet one, so they do see a lot of malignant tumors).Has anyone had a cat have something similar to this? Was the out come at all positive? I lost one cat a couple of years ago to a very virulent cancer, where by the time we noticed the first visible lump, it was throughout her system, so I'm really worried.It also doesn't help any that this is the cat who really got me through my son's death and my health issues that led to his premature delivery, and then cuddled with me through pretty much my entire bedrest with DD. She's my baby, and in many ways, the thought of losing her feels like losing my son all over again. I'm terrified. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Yup, my ten year old had a tumor on the left side of her mouth. I didn't notice it until she started really losing weight because she couldn't eat. I couldn't afford a biopsy so I just had them remove the tumor (along with a few teeth because apparently the tumor was causing bacteria build up and had started rotting some teeth in the back). It was done as a dental visit. She is fine now, no recurrence or anything. She hasn't really gained all her weight back but nothing to worry about, IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happi duck Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 ((Hugs)) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 I hate that our beloved furry pets don't live to be 100. I hope it turns out to be nothing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
datgh Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 Haven't had this happened to any of my kitties so no advice but I am sending big hugs that it is something that won't be to hard to deal with for you and your kitty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hannahs4 Posted April 7, 2015 Share Posted April 7, 2015 No advice (gonna have to wait on the path report), but sending (((hugs))). You hit the nail on the head with what is so hard about having and losing pets. They see us through so much life trauma.. They are invaluable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted April 8, 2015 Author Share Posted April 8, 2015 Based on the biopsy, it's probably not a tumor-the results indicate some sort of infection. The vet says it's definitely a strange one, so the plan is to take her back to the vet, and he's going to sedate the cat, lance whatever the thing is, take samples to culture and see what we're dealing with, and see if he can see a cause. His guess is that she may have gotten something lodged in the roof of her mouth that started the reaction and inflammation and that removing it would help relieve the problem. He also plans to start her on antibiotics while waiting for the cultures to grow, starting with ones that are usually effective for dental issues. I'm feeling MUCH more optimistic at this point. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catwoman Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 Thank you for the update. I am so relieved to hear that it isn't cancer. I hope the antibiotics work quickly. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 That sounds like good news! My kitty's tumor was the not good kind - squamous cell carcinoma. I hope your cat's is something easy to treat. Is she on Antirobe? thats usually the abx they use for oral stuff in cats. It tastes awful so sadly is a pita to administer. Even my very mild and patient cat was always ticked when she had to go on that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted April 9, 2015 Author Share Posted April 9, 2015 They'll start her on antibiotics tomorrow morning after taking cultures. He didn't want her to start on it tonight because it might make it harder to see what is going on. I'm hoping they'll start her on either an injectable or IV antibiotic to get it started, since giving her anything orally right now is likely to be next to impossible since she has so much going on. Or that the compounding pharmacy can do something-she gets her thyroid meds transdermally, which is much easier to deal with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted April 9, 2015 Author Share Posted April 9, 2015 Just got off the phone with the vet. He removed most of whatever it is, and says it looks more like a vascular tumor or growth than an infection. He's culturing fluid and sending both fluid and tissue for the pathologists to look at, but meanwhile, hopefully removing as much of it as possible will improve her quality of life while we figure out what's going on and what the plan of attack should be. He's keeping her a few more hours to start IV antibiotics and fluids and see how she recovers, and we'll hopefully be able to take her home this evening. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hornblower Posted April 9, 2015 Share Posted April 9, 2015 fingers crossed for good news & that she gets to come home soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.