Cat may have injection site sarcoma?

My 12 year old cat has a lump near her right hind leg. It's about the size of a cherry tomato or a small ping pong ball. It's hard, moves only very slightly, and I would say it is slightly, but not greatly, abnormally-shaped. It's still basically circular. I took her to the vet as soon as I noticed it. The vet did aspirate it, but right off the bat she told me that she could tell it was most likely not a cyst. She said the next step would be a biopsy, but that would be around a grand, but I have nowhere near that kind of money. My dad (I'm 18 and live with him) would pay for it, but he is out of work and on unemployment. We are barely scraping by as it is, and have no way to pay for the biopsy. I'm not sure what to do. The vet seemed pretty confident it was injection site sarcoma, but the thing is, my cat hadn't had a rabies shot in 2 years. Could it still be this? Is there any way to know for sure what it is without the biopsy? I'm still trying to hold out hope it could theoretically be a benign tumor, fatty tumor, etc., but I know that it does not look good. If anyone has any advice at all, I would so, so appreciate it. I am so worried and devastated.

Try some different vets and ask for a quote.

I'm assuming the $1000 is to remove the tumor and take a biopsy? If it is for a biopsy alone, that is way too much money!

You can also tell the vet that you are only willing to do the lump removal. If it is cancer, and you don't want to put your cat through chemotherapy.

Vet's will often add optional stuff such as bloodwork, as they don't want to put an older cat under anasthesia without knowing he is in good health first.

I would explain that you would just like the lump removed, if possible. It may be worth doing the biopsy as well. My cat had a huge lump on her tongue that looked cancerous. It turned out it was only a esinophilic granuloma and not life threatening.

http://smallanimal.vethospital.ufl....r-and-treatment/injection-site-sarcomas-cats/

I'm so sorry you found a lump. I think sometimes they can take awhile to show up. The thing with a biopsy is that if it showed it is cancerous and they recommend surgery to have it removed, then you'd need money for that, too. Did you ask your vet about surgery without a biopsy? Aside from the fact that you'd be putting a 12-year-old cat under anesthesia, what would be the negatives of surgery without a biopsy? These are the kinds of questions I'd be asking. The hind leg is at least a "less invasive" part of the body vs. the intestines, for example.

I am going through this now as well. My cat is 13 and hasn't had a rabies vaccine in 4 years. His is also on his back right thigh. When we discovered it, it was the size of a pea. In a month it has grown to the size of a shelled walnut.

My vet said it was VAS without doing a biopsy. He said based on the location and the fact that it's growing so quickly, he is 99% sure. I called my previous retired vet and talked to him about it and he agreed without even seeing it. I think these things have a certain feel, and vets just know.

They both said the only options are surgery- aggressive removal of the lump using large margins, or amputation. Before I committed to either, he would do an incisional biopsy to confirm. This is where they cut a small slice out and run the tests. An aspiration was not suggested due to the fact that it will often throw a false negative because they grab so few cells.

The WORST thing you can do for this is a typical lumpectomy, where they just remove the lump. These things are aggressive and have tentacles that reach deep and far, and very wide margins must be taken to try to get all the tentacles. Most of the scars/incisions you see on these types of lumps are HUGE for that reason. A lumpectomy will not get all the tentacles, and the tumor will come back more aggressively than before and very quickly. For the surgery, it is recommended that an oncologist do it, as most vets are not willing to take enough of the surrounding tissue to get it all.

My vets, as well as most on a VAS online support group I joined, have said the best way to beat it is to amputate if its on the leg. That is why rabies vaccines are now given in the leg. Unfortunately, because Benson's is so high on his thigh, it would require partial removal of his pelvis as well. Generally if the lump is closer to the knee, this is a practical option. Actually better odds than removal of the tumor.

I wish you luck in deciding what to do. It's a horrible decision. In the end, we have decided not to treat it, and are at peace with our decision.

Sorry, I keep using VAS as the term (vaccine associated sarcoma), but the new term is ISS (injection site sarc) . I didn't want to confuse anyone.

yeah, it is to remove the tumor, as well as the biopsy!

chloe92us said:

I am going through this now as well. My cat is 13 and hasn't had a rabies vaccine in 4 years. His is also on his back right thigh. When we discovered it, it was the size of a pea. In a month it has grown to the size of a shelled walnut.

My vet said it was VAS without doing a biopsy. He said based on the location and the fact that it's growing so quickly, he is 99% sure. I called my previous retired vet and talked to him about it and he agreed without even seeing it. I think these things have a certain feel, and vets just know.

They both said the only options are surgery- aggressive removal of the lump using large margins, or amputation. Before I committed to either, he would do an incisional biopsy to confirm. This is where they cut a small slice out and run the tests. An aspiration was not suggested due to the fact that it will often throw a false negative because they grab so few cells.

The WORST thing you can do for this is a typical lumpectomy, where they just remove the lump. These things are aggressive and have tentacles that reach deep and far, and very wide margins must be taken to try to get all the tentacles. Most of the scars/incisions you see on these types of lumps are HUGE for that reason. A lumpectomy will not get all the tentacles, and the tumor will come back more aggressively than before and very quickly. For the surgery, it is recommended that an oncologist do it, as most vets are not willing to take enough of the surrounding tissue to get it all.

My vets, as well as most on a VAS online support group I joined, have said the best way to beat it is to amputate if its on the leg. That is why rabies vaccines are now given in the leg. Unfortunately, because Benson's is so high on his thigh, it would require partial removal of his pelvis as well. Generally if the lump is closer to the knee, this is a practical option. Actually better odds than removal of the tumor.

I wish you luck in deciding what to do. It's a horrible decision. In the end, we have decided not to treat it, and are at peace with our decision.

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Thank you so, so much for the reply. Everything you wrote is almost verbatim what I was told by the vet today. Unfortunately, my kitty's lump is on her upper thigh/hind leg area as well--the vet said amputation would have been the most effective, but just like with your kitty, part of the pelvis would have to be removed, as well. The vet said treatment could really reduce the quality of life for her... I understand why you decided not to treat it. So you didn't opt for the biopsy at all?

Again, thank you so much for this answer. It has given me some peace of mind  and comfort, knowing that I am not the only one in this situation. I think I will opt not to get treatment, as well. I guess with ISS, there really isn't ANY way to treat it without putting the cat through lots of pain and trauma. It's devastating but it would be even harder to see her in pain. Thank you again.

My mom's cat had a lump that the vet said was ISS (without doing a biopsy). It was about tangerine size. But maybe it wasn't because I'm pretty sure he just did a regular lumpectomy and it hasn't come back and it's been a couple years now. He said if it did come back the best thing would be to remove the entire leg :/. Anyway, she hadn't been vaccinated for 3 years prior to that so I guess it can pop up a few years later.

Ask the vet how much it would be to just remove the lump, with nice wide margins. If you're not going to spring for chemo there's really no point diagnosing it definitively. It could be fairly affordable---pretty sure my mom paid around $200 for the surgery, although hers was a young cat; for an older cat blood work would be a good idea.

GoHolistic said:

 
I'm so sorry you found a lump. I think sometimes they can take awhile to show up. The thing with a biopsy is that if it showed it is cancerous and they recommend surgery to have it removed, then you'd need money for that, too. Did you ask your vet about surgery without a biopsy? Aside from the fact that you'd be putting a 12-year-old cat under anesthesia, what would be the negatives of surgery without a biopsy? These are the kinds of questions I'd be asking. The hind leg is at least a "less invasive" part of the body vs. the intestines, for example.

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Thank you for the reply I really appreciate it.

I think we've decided just to let it run its course, because ultimately that would put her through less pain and trauma. This is a little offbeat but I was wondering, based on your username, if you have any idea if there are any holistic medicine-related things we can do to help improve her health/quality of life? At this point we would love to try holistic alternatives to try and help her/keep her happy. Thank you so much.

orchidsky said:

 
Thank you for the reply I really appreciate it.

I think we've decided just to let it run its course, because ultimately that would put her through less pain and trauma. This is a little offbeat but I was wondering, based on your username, if you have any idea if there are any holistic medicine-related things we can do to help improve her health/quality of life? At this point we would love to try holistic alternatives to try and help her/keep her happy. Thank you so much.

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I understand your decision.    I believe in an integrative approach - any combination of traditional Western medicine, holistic, homeopathic, and/or Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) for optimal results. I do know that some holistic and TCM practitioners have things they recommend for kitties with cancer, and that would probably be where I would turn to as well if one of mine was diagnosed. I would suggest finding a TCM vet near you. You can do a search here:

http://www.tcvm.com/Resources/FindaTCVMPractitioner.aspx

Even if they are not necessary local, you may find one willing to do phone consults. This person and your regular vet should work as a team and know what the other is doing. I wish you the best of luck.

orchidsky said:

So you didn't opt for the biopsy at all?

I guess with ISS, there really isn't ANY way to treat it without putting the cat through lots of pain and trauma. It's devastating but it would be even harder to see her in pain.

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From what I have read, cats spring back from surgery pretty quickly. For us, we decided not to pursue treatment for several reasons, but there IS a decent chance that it could be fully removed, assuming the Vet takes large margins. If you have the money, and can get confirmation from the vet that he is willing to take large margins, you should at least consider it.

Hello, I am on here trying to see how other cats went through treatment for this. Luna had surgery in September -$1800 to remove the tumor between her shoulder blades. Narrow margins only were achieved. Radiation daily for a month was suggested. She recovered from her surgery and was happy again. while I pondered the next step I think I found another lump. The vet wasn't sure if it was scar tissue from her surgery removing several layers of fat and tissue and and a little shoulder muscle. I am to see him first week of January but my gut says its sarcoma again. How much of a small cat can we or should we cut? If I remove the tumor more cells might spread. If I do radiation, she will be miserable and it isn't a guaranteed cure. and how much of her body to radiate now?

If it were the leg, amputation might have saved her.