Rusty’s Treatment Diary
A Lymphoma Dog’s First Month in Chemotherapy
Rusty. Stage III Lymphoma was the diagnosis received by Rusty, a four year-old Australian Shepherd, in November 2007. His vague symptoms were a familiar story: he had been picking at his food and drinking lots of water. "The morning he didn’t bark at the mailman I knew something was wrong," reports his owner, Carla. But she didn't expect a lymphoma diagnosis! Carla quickly found a veterinary oncologist and Rusty began treatment using a protocol of Prednisone, Elspar, Cytoxan, and Vincristine, and she embarked on new, supportive diet program for Rusty. [ADD INFO ] We're featuring Rusty's Treatment Diary on PWC Lifeline to give newcomers insight into the early stages of lymphoma treatment and Rusty's homelife. Rusty was clearly a "party animal", so loved by his caretakers. Carla Pettersen, carla02@comcast.net.
November
6, 2007 –
Rusty came home today.
It seems like months but it was only 5 days ago that our little world
changed forever. Five days ago we
decided it was time to take Rusty to see the Vet.
He had been picky with his food and drinking tons of water for the past
couple of weeks and something just wasn’t right.
The morning he didn’t bark at the mailman I knew something was wrong.
Wrong maybe, but I never expected anything like this.
Looking back, there were lots of little signs and I am wracked with guilt
because I didn’t do anything. Once
again, I didn’t listen to my gut because I didn’t want to think that
anything could be wrong with this little guy. Rusty was diagnosed with
lymphoma on approximately November 2, 2007, just a few weeks short of his 4th
birthday. Rusty isn’t mine, he is
his daddy’s boy, but I love him just the same.
I want to tell his story and document the time we have left.
I hope this goes on forever. It’s
the last chapter I dread with all of my heart. This weekend was one of the
hardest I have ever faced. Rusty
went to the vet on Thursday and the vet noticed a lump on his left upper flank.
The blood work came back on Friday and showed dangerously high levels of
calcium. Our vet told us that he
needed to be admitted and administered fluids to help bring the levels down.
On Saturday the calcium level was still on the rise and now his kidney
levels were dangerously high. The
vet then recommended that we take him to another facility to be admitted and to
wait for an internist to take him on. By
Sunday, we were frantic to get some answers.
It seemed that nothing was being done, other than fluids, to address the
problem. He remained at this
facility and on Monday, finally, the internist started him on prednisone.
On Monday afternoon he was given Elspar, the first drug in the chemo
protocol, and his calcium levels started to go down.
We were visiting as often as possible and each day he seemed to get worse
and weaker. On Sunday we also
noticed that he had swollen lymph nodes all over his body.
We were worried beyond words and frantic to get some answers.
On Monday morning I made an appointment with an oncologist and for the
first time, I felt like we were on the right track.
The oncologist sat down with us for at least 45 minutes and explained the
process and what we could expect. Finally,
on Tuesday morning, they called and said we could take him home.
His calcium level was out of the danger zone and his kidney levels were
normal. At this point, I want to
urge anyone that might be going through this, to make sure that they find a Dr.
and facility that trust. So, now Rusty is home for
the first time in 5 days. He is
tired and lethargic and we are watching his every move for some indication that
he is getting better or worse. We
are scared. We are scared of what is
to come and we question whether or not we are looking out for our best interests
or his. We want him well and happy.
We don’t want to put him through anything that will make him feel
worse. We feel guilty and we grieve.
Our emotions run from pure relief that he is here and dread for the next
step. We have an appointment with
the new oncologist for Thursday. At
this appointment they will test him to see if he can tolerate the chemo and they
may add another chemo drug. We are
scared….
November
7, 2007 –
This morning Rusty woke me up. He
came bounding down the hall, busted through the door and landed in my bed.
It’s been weeks since this has happened and I wake up feeling like
today will be a wonderful day. He
chases away the squirrels and he seems happy.
I make him breakfast, give him medicine, refill his water bowls and look
for any sign that might give me a clue as to how he really feels.
He seems much better than yesterday but I wonder if it is really true.
He is not exactly back to his old self but better than yesterday and that
keeps me smiling all day. Around 1pm
we take him to one of his favorite parks and he catches Frisbee just like a pro.
He runs and barks and smiles. His
bowels are a little loose and he gets tired faster than before but he seems
better and that is what we need. We
find each other sneaking times to just lie on the floor and hold him close….
We pray…..
On Wednesday we have a
fairly normal day. Bill has to fly
out of town tomorrow morning and we debate whether or not it is too soon to
start another chemo drug. Rusty gets
tired fast and sleeps a lot but his appetite is good and he seems to get a
little better each day. We go for a
short walk in the afternoon and mostly just take it easy.
I don’t notice any lumps and that is good news.
On Thursday morning I take
Rusty to see the new oncologist. Her
name is Dr. Santoro and I like her. She
cares and she takes time to talk. I
explain that I am afraid that Rusty is not strong enough to take a new drug yet.
Honestly, I am not strong enough to take giving him a new drug and being
alone with him until his dad returns on Friday night.
Dr. Santoro tells me that Monday will be fine and goes ahead with the
test that will tell us whether or not he can tolerate the drugs.
Dogs in the collie family sometimes don’t have the ability to process
these drugs and they become toxic. If
the test results aren’t back on Monday then she will start a different drug in
the protocol with fewer side effects.
On Friday morning I woke up with Rusty snuggled next to me in the bed.
He usually doesn’t sleep in bed but he always seems to know what I
need.
Saturday and Sunday have
been great days. Rusty is getting
better. He chases the squirrels each
morning and still wants to play Frisbee. His
energy level is much better and tomorrow is chemo day.
Did I mention that I am scared?
November
12, 2007 – Today is Monday and
it’s time to go to the new oncologist and start a new chemo drug.
Rusty has been great over the weekend and today he is still feeling
wonderful. We arrive at the vets
office and drop him off for his first round of cytoxan.
I have read the side effects and dangers so many times that I know them
by heart. Some dogs, as much as 30%,
experience cystitis. This will
appear in the form of bloody urine and painful urination.
Our Dr. administers lasix at the same time to increase thirst and
urination. We are told to make sure
he has plenty of water and that he is let out often to urinate.
When we come to pick him up 4 hours later he comes out looking happy to
see us and relaxed. The nurse tells
us that he has no swelling and all of his other vitals are in the normal range.
This is great news and we are happy to get it.
His dosage of prednisone is decreased from 60mg per day to 40mg.
We take Rusty home and start watching for any sign of reaction from the
new drug. I monitor his water intake
and take him out so often that he looks at me like I’m crazy.
I even set the alarm clock and take him out every hour during the night.
He wasn’t so pleased when I woke him up at 3am to go potty.
His appetite is great and since we have switched to the new homemade diet
he eats like crazy. We spoil him.
He loves it.
November
13, 2007 – Rusty is still doing
great and showing no sign of side effects from the drugs.
He has diarrhea but is acting playful and happy.
We are still pushing the fluids and potty breaks and he is still eating
everything he can. His energy level
is fine and he even catches a few Frisbees and does his doggie walk with me.
November
14, 2007 – Today is another great
day. Rusty bounds down the hall and
lands square on my chest at 6am. He
is hungry and wants to go outside. What
Rusty wants, Rusty gets. This is as
normal a day as we have ever had. The
only exceptions would be me constantly checking his water bowls and letting him
out more often. He has that light
back in his eyes. There really
isn’t a better way to explain it.
November
15, 2007 – Rusty wakes up with a
sparkle in his eyes and food on his mind. He
was never one to let me forget feeding times but now he is more insistent than
ever. He is playful and happy.
He follows his dad around like always and comes to me when he wants
something. I am starting to believe
that everything will be okay and I even let myself forget about the disease for
entire 5 minute stretches. I look
back on the last ten days since Rusty came home as a blessing and I am so
thankful that things are this normal. I
am mostly thankful that the new drugs didn’t seem to have any major side
effects and Rusty is healthy. Today
we are hopeful…
**********************************Postscript***************************************
Despite these early hopeful results, Rusty struggled with chemo.