- Joined
- Jan 7, 2014
- Messages
- 3
- Purraise
- 1
Thanks for the support and encouragement offered here. My six-year-old cat, Darcy, was diagnosed with a VAS (rare but aggressive tumor) that grew from invisible to 4 cm within a couple of weeks. We got him in for surgery right away, but because it's a high grade sarcoma, he'll need additional care (most likely radiation and/or chemotherapy -- we're waiting until the incision is fully healed to make a decision). He's a sweetie and doing as well as can be expected. It's been really emotionally difficult, and as a grad student I've also been struggling to pay the bills.
Because the tumor got so big so fast (testing and surgery was delayed slightly due to the holidays -- gah!), they weren't able to get quite the margins they wanted. While they don't see any spreading of the cancer, chemo would make sure there isn't any. Radiation would make sure it's gone locally if the margins are the biggest concern. I know that VAS can recur within months if there's even a tiny bit left -- between the shoulder blades is notoriously difficult to treat. Because he's so young, I'd love to help if there's a "cure," but as the oncologist said, at the moment there's no wrong choice, because we just don't know if there's anything remaining. I know chemo has a lot of side effects and I'd hate to put him through that unless it's necessary. If anyone has done radiation or chemo, and can talk a little about what the process was like, that would be helpful.
Because the tumor got so big so fast (testing and surgery was delayed slightly due to the holidays -- gah!), they weren't able to get quite the margins they wanted. While they don't see any spreading of the cancer, chemo would make sure there isn't any. Radiation would make sure it's gone locally if the margins are the biggest concern. I know that VAS can recur within months if there's even a tiny bit left -- between the shoulder blades is notoriously difficult to treat. Because he's so young, I'd love to help if there's a "cure," but as the oncologist said, at the moment there's no wrong choice, because we just don't know if there's anything remaining. I know chemo has a lot of side effects and I'd hate to put him through that unless it's necessary. If anyone has done radiation or chemo, and can talk a little about what the process was like, that would be helpful.
Last edited by a moderator: