From:
Caitlyn Martin
Date: 2010-01-04 19:48:32 UTC
Subject: Re: [ferrethealth] Re: adrenal: new to the site an need some ferret help
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
One thing which hasn't been mentioned is that the medical option
(usually Lupron Depot) can cost more over time than doing surgery.
The vets I've used don't believe much in melatonin, particularly once
the disease has been diagnosed. We did try an implant with Nyssa who
had lymphoma as well and was not a surgical candidate and it had no
effect.
All the vets my ferrets have seen believe that surgery is the only
good option in an otherwise healthy and reasonably young ferret.
Surgery is often a cure; medications don't cure anything but rather
relieve symptoms and/or slow the progress of the disease. My Ella had
adrenal surgery more than five years ago and has had no medical
problems since. Over the years 10 of my ferrets have had adrenal
disease and surgery. We only lost one to the disease (Ryo-Ohki) and
she was that rare case where adrenal carcinoma metastasized throughout
her body.
Ryo-Ohki's story raises another issue: if you do have a rare case of
an aggressive adrenal carcinoma then doing surgery quickly will save
the ferret's life. You can't know if you're dealing with a carcinoma
or not until the gland is removed and sent for pathology. Most
adrenal growths are not carcinomas and most adrenal carcinomas are not
aggressive and don't metastasize so surgery is rarely a life or death
issue. OTOH, do you want to take that chance with your little one?
So... the long and the short of it is that my advice is to consult
with a knowledgeable ferret vet. If he or she advises surgery then do
what you can to put the money together and get it done sooner rather
than later. If he or she feels your ferret is not a good candidate
for surgery then by all means go ahead with Lupron Depot and/or
whatever else your vet advises.
The usual disclaimer applies: I am not a vet, just a moderately
experienced ferret owner. I don't even play a vet on TV.
Good luck!
All the best,
Caity and the terrific trio
(Ella, Zephyr and Chin Soon)
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