Recommendations for testing

[SamAPCat]

Hey everyone,
I took my 12 year old cat into the vet to get a blood test today (vomiting for the past couple days), and the vet seems to have found some concerning things. Her calcium level was measured at 11.4, and then “corrected” to be 11.9. The vet has said it’s almost 100% GI cancer, and they’d like to run an ionized calcium test which they said would determine if she has cancer. She said it could also be something with parathyroid issues, but she’s never seen that in other cats. After looking into the different types of tests, It doesn’t seem like an ionized calcium test would determine cancer, but a parathyroid related protein test may be better. What would be the best/most affordable route to take? Unfortunately I can’t spend thousands of dollars to run some tests that will probably be recommended.

 

[StanAndAlf]

I would start with an ultrasound, to see if there is any inflammation or growths in the GI track, and to check if the thyroid glands look normal. I am unfamiliar with the tests you mentioned, my clinic normally leans more towards biopsy over anything else.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

IF an ultrasound is in your budget, that would be, I THINK, the best.

 

[SamAPCat]

IF an ultrasound is in your budget, that would be, I THINK, the best.

got it, do you have any idea how accurate the parathyroid hormone test is? It’s a difference between 150 dollars and the cost of an ultrasound (around 400-500 at my vet)

 

[fionasmom]

If money is a question, although I do agree that an ultrasound is best, make sure that you talk to the vet about what they parathyroid tests will confirm. I am not a doctor, but have had both of them myself and it seems as if they confirm calcium levels and then pinpoint more accurately hypercalcemia. High or low on the second one usually means that cancer will be investigated further. The first one can suggest a tumor on the parathyroid. I am not clear on ionized calcium, so can't comment. If I were you, I would ask the vet if you have the parathyroid tests if the next step is an ultrasound regardless. Some vets start at the low end, probably rightly, but that does not mean that the first test will be conclusive and then you go on from there.