This is Bella and we've just arrived home from Albury. It's a nine hour round trip today so she's done very well considering she was put under a general anaesthetic. The shaving goes around the other side too so she doesn't look too happy with her new haircut!
Aside from the fact that I know she is terminal and will not be cured by any treatment, I have to say I'm as happy as is possible.
For some background into Bella.
She is six and a half years old. Both of her parents are pedigree Labrador and Bella was one of seven (if my memory serves me correctly). in the litter.After speaking to the breeder she advises that there have been no other reports from owners of the other dogs of any cancer.
I attended at Pet Focus in Albury where I spoke to Dr. Renee Pigdon. She was fantastic to deal with and went through the entire process.
Bella underwent scans to measure the tumours and I was advised that even though there are some minor issues in her spleen, this is to be expected with lymphoma. Renee said Bella is a really good candidate.
Going through this process has really hit home to me just how important this trial can be both for dogs and their owners.
My usual vet went through my options which was just chemotherapy. In her opinion Bella may have two to three months to live with no treatment. Proceeding with Chemo may extend her life to between 12 – 18 months.There are also a lot of variables in this form of treatment including a lot of other drugs to balance out the side effects of the Chemo.
So going down the Chemo pathway would cost in the vicinity of $20 to $25 thousand dollars and only extend her life by one year but potentially cause her a lot of discomfort.
As we know with the Monepantel trial, there are minimal side effects and may (hopefully) extend Bella’s life by the same amount of time as the Chemo.
So, the process for Bella is this:
Tomorrow morning is Day 1 where she has to be given eight tablets. They start off with a big dose. Then every day thereafter she receives two tablets per day.I travel back up to Albury on Day 14 and Day 28 for an assessment. I am required to maintain a daily log that I hand back to the Vet for their records.Things that I need to record are thirst, urination, vomiting and quality of life.
I've put her on to a high protein low carb diet. I found out that rice is only good for dogs if it is freshly cooked and black rice is the best as it's a carb.
So that’s about it for now.If anyone has any questions don’t hesitate to ask. I’m sure there’s something I’ve forgotten to mention!
(20min delay)