Prednisolone, Transfer Factor + Dosage

My cat has a tumor in his stomach and is prescribed these 2 drugs, among many others (Vitamin A, Prozyme, etc)

Doctors recommended 10mg of Prednisolone a day and 1 capsule of Tranfer Factor Plus a day. Given in 1/2 dosage in 12 hours increments.

My cat is doing fine, and he had diahrea at first so I stopped all medication for 24 hours. Started with 5mg a day of Prednisolone and 1/2 capsule of Transfer Factor, my cat has been doing better than ever, he seems completely normal.

Given his situation, should I given him as MUCH drugs as possible or as little? Will giving him more drugs help him fight off the cancer?

Given his situation, should I given him as MUCH drugs as possible or as little? Will giving him more drugs help him fight off the cancer?

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The key is balance. To little and you don't get the beneficial effects, to much and you can get serious side effects. I would strongly recommend you go with what your vet says.

George

He just had diarrhrea again, and I'm 100% positive it's the predisolone now...... even at 1/2 dose

Should I feed him less? Stop the medication?

It does make him feel really good, and it's wonderful to see him active again

Diarrhea is a common side effect to many drugs. It generally goes away in a few days as the body adjusts to the medication. It's important to talk to your vet with concerns since he/she will know the particulars in this case. I would strongly recommend that you NOT adjust medication levels without discussing it with your vet.

George

NEVER NEVER stop or adjust prednisone/prednisolone on your own, ever! This is a corticosteroid that is prescribed judiciously and is usually tapered over time. If you adjust or cease this medication on your own, you could cause serious (and life-threatening consequences to your kitty). Only your vet should ever adjust or taper this medication. He prescribed it for a reason, and the proper dosing is necessary in order for it to be most effective. It is usually prescribed at a high loading dose, and later on, tapered to a low-dose maintenance schedule. Again, NEVER adjust this on your own! (you need to call your vet and tell him what you've done)

Prednisone is also an important part of kitty's treatment right now, it has multiple properties your kitty can benefit from: reducing pain and inflammation of the tumor, increasing appetite, and possibly shrinking the tumor to some degree.

The diarrhea is probably from either the vitamins you're giving or his diet. TF is packed with more vitamins (and other things) than your kitty needs (I don't recommend this, there is always a potential of oversupplementing with such products). Either ask your vet about lowering the vitamin dose, or discussing the diet and opting for something that is easier on the stomach/intestines. Fluids would probably be beneficial at this point as well, especially if the diarrhea has caused dehydration.

Talk to your vet in more detail and request he inform you about proper medication administration, diet, what to expect (and measures you can take) when problems like this occur, he can address them fully, but you have to notify him when something isn't right. Please review the link I gave you earlier on Caring for Pets With Cancer, it has invaluable information you can discuss with your vet..............Traci

adjusting the medication was not of my own doing, it was recommended by my doctor. I only stopped feeding him for 12 hours, the doctor recommended stopping the medication for 24, and to stop feeding him for another 12 (total 24).

He also suggested the new 5mg a day dosage. My cat is drinking and eating lots, I will give him time to adjust to the medication as suggested.

TF+ is also Extremely expensive..........so I don't know how much of it I can really afford.

I will most likely stick with the 5mg dosage until recommended otherwise by the doctor.

Side note: I accidentally knocked over a cup of water into my cats bed yesterday while he was sleeping. I think he is still mad at me :/