From:
katharine@nettally.com
Date: 2005-01-22 20:21:50 UTC
Subject: RE: Reagan - Adenocarcinoma
To: ferrethealth@smartgroups.com
Message-ID: <3415141.1106425310450.JavaMail.root@thallium.smartgroups.com>
Posting again, hopefully for some comments:
Reagan is about 6 1/2 y.o., a retired breeder. He was neutered in May of 2004. I have had him since June. Since that time, he has had several adenocarcinomas removed surgically. Four times, to be exact. The first was on his left rear paw, on the inside near the "ankle". It looked like a mast cell tumor but was determined to be an adenocarcinoma (thru pathology).
(on a side note....the breeder notes say that they actually removed a growth from his foot themselves (eeeewwwwww) once or twice...I'm certain it was the same thing)
Just a short while later, he got a very large lump (pecan sized) in the groin area on that same side. Doc removed it and it was again determined to be an adenocarinoma, with clean margins. Within a few days, the mass was back, as big as before. Doc once again removed it. This last time, he went about 3 months before the mass recurred, in the same spot. It was removed once again about 2 weeks ago. I talked with "my" ferret specialist vet and she suggested a round of chemo. I told her I am convinced there are some cells hiding, just waiting to emerge once again. Adenocarcinoma is considered a very aggressive cancer.
My local vet consulted with a veterinary oncologist yesterday about Reagan. Her recommended protocol is 5 treatments, 3 weeks apart, with Doxorubicin. Doc is getting prices on the Doxorubicin now. Apparently there is a place where you can obtain single doses, rather than purchasing a whole bottle which is about 10x what we need. Because of the risk of necrosis around the injection site, my vet will require a catheter be placed each time. Also, a CBC is recommended prior to each treatment. He is working up costs for each treatment for me now.
I guess my question is whether this sounds like a good course to possibly prevent future recurrences. Are there any other recommended courses of action? Comments?
I'm not a huge fan of chemo in ferrets, having gone through it with one several years ago. However, that was an attempt to treat lymphoma. I think this is very different, in that we have removed the mass and are trying to kill off any remaining cells.