THE CANCER SAGA CONTINUES

New Year's Eve and New Year's Day were as depressing as Christmas. I was nervous over the different possible outcomes of the surgery; I hoped for the best but I was expecting the worst. Artie, on the other hand, was extremely angry about how this played out; the possibility of losing Annie so soon after losing Buddy was very distressing. Both of us were upset that by trying to avoid any surgery Annie now had to go through not one but two operations.

Friday, January 4, 2013, the day of the follow-up surgery arrived. Annie's appointment was for 7:30 AM. Her surgery was scheduled for morning. I received a call during the afternoon from Dr. Cherrone, the surgeon who performed the operation. She sounded very upbeat as she reported Annie went through the surgery successfully and was recovering nicely, however, we would have to wait for the biopsy results to determine if the margins were clean and whether or not we had to go forward with radiation therapy.

Both Artie and I were emotionally totaled, counting the hours until Annie could come home. 6 PM Saturday we were at VERG waiting to collect Annie, get post-op instructions and leave for what we hoped would be an uneventful evening at home. When Annie entered the exam room, we were stunned to see her acting completely normal. The only evidence of surgery was the big bandage wrapping her entire midsection. She was alert, thrilled to see us and busily exploring the room, smelling the floor and furniture and, as always, begging for attention from the Veterinary Technician and us.

Annie was on medicine and we needed to keep the bandages on for awhile until we were sure any residual bleeding or oozing from the wound stopped. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect to pick up Frankenweenie but that is exactly what Annie looked like with her long scar closed by staples! The pictures below were taken about two weeks after the surgery. A significant amount of swelling at the surgical site had already gone down and her hair was starting to grow back.

My next post will continue with our post-surgery experiences.

Annie resting prior to our daily exam of her sutures.

The second surgery incision was twice the length of the first surgery.

Close-up of staples; you can see swelling especially at both ends of the incision.

Another close-up of Annie's surgery.

ANNIE'S CANCER SURGERY

Quite a while ago I promised to write about Annie's surgery once I could bring myself to do so. Now is the time.

As anyone following this blog will know, Annie had a lump at the bottom of her rib-cage for more than a year. Both myself and Artie as well as Annie's doctors were monitoring it. The lump felt like a fatty tumor. At the time of Buddy's death, Artie wanted to have it removed; I did not want to put her through surgery if it wasn't necessary because of her age as well as the dangers associated with surgery and anesthesia. We decided to continue to monitor the lump.

Around Thanksgiving we noticed the lump was bigger. Not by much but now we were concerned with 'quality-of-life' issues - would it be uncomfortable for her to lie on her side? If we didn't remove it now and it became bigger wouldn't surgery be riskier as she aged?

Annie went for an office visit December 13th. We discussed our concerns with the doctor and a sample was taken. When the cytology report came in December 15th, the findings were as follows:

"No significant inflammatory response was evident. The spindle cells displayed minimal atypia. Findings may reflect a benign fibrosing cystic structure, cystic spindle cell tumor (fibroma or low grade malignant potential sarcoma), or other underlying nonexfoliating fibrosing cystic structure."

At that point the both of us AND the doctor wanted it removed. Surgery was performed December 20th; Annie came home the same day. She was still somewhat under the effects of the anesthesia, on Rimadyl, not interested in food or water and did nothing but sleep. It took a few days for Annie to return to her usual self - a sure sign that my girl is older now.

Christmas was a somber affair as we worried about the biopsy results. The results of the biopsy came December 26th and the lump definitely was cancer. The report characterized it as a slow-moving soft tissue sarcoma. The surgery did not produce clear margins; Annie needed to have additional surgery. If the second surgery did not produce clean margins, she would need radiation therapy. We were referred to Dr. Cohen at VERG (Veterinary Emergency Referral Group) and an appointment was made for the next day.

Early the next day, Artie and I took Annie for her consult with the oncologist. Dr. Cohen was wonderful and Annie fell in love with her. After the exam, Annie was taken for a series of x-rays while we waited in the examining room.

Dr. Cohen returned with the x-rays and reviewed them with us. Annie had several points in her favor.

1. Her behavior was normal which Dr. Cohen assured us was a good sign.
2. There were no visible tumors on any of the x-rays - a good indicator that the tumor most likely wasn't metastatic.
3. Radiation would only be needed if the second surgery did not produce clean margins.
4. Annie had a good chance of a 100% recovery if the second surgery produced clean margins.

We discussed radiation therapy which would be done over a period of eighteen days if needed. My mind was reeling from the logistics.  There were 3 places Annie could go to, the Animal Medical Center in NYC, a facility upstate or a facility in New Jersey. She would go on an outpatient basis which meant going in and coming home daily or she could stay for 5 days coming home for the weekends. Dr. Cohen suggested not thinking about next steps until we had the post-surgery results. The follow-up surgery was scheduled for January 5th and we all went home to wonder what 2013 had in store for Annie health-wise.

I will pick up this narrative in a second post along with post-surgery photos.

A WINTER WEEK

It's been a typical winter week. Both Annie and I have been under the weather with human and doggie colds.  When that happens we sleep in, cuddle, listen to music, read and above all, Annie receives plenty of hugs, pats and massages which she thoroughly loves.

Orphee is still staking claim to the outer hall, but he comes to the apartment door more often now. The door is left open in the evenings even though he doesn't come across the threshold. We're hoping his curiosity will get the better of his fear of Annie and he will begin exploring new space. As soon as his neuter surgery is done that will change; Artie and I intend to begin a regimen of getting him adjusted to being in an apartment.

Also, there is the matter of Annie's end-of-the-year cancer surgery.  The initial surgery is now about 2 months behind us and I'm ready to write about this episode in depth.  I intend to cover it in a few coming posts by documenting the events leading up to, during and after the surgeries as well as trying to set some proactive guidelines so others can possibly avoid what we went through. More on this shortly.

NEUTER DATE SET

I've been in touch with The Toby Project and we've set the date for Orphee's neuter surgery - March 4th.

In the meantime, we are still trying to get him to join the family but he's sticking to the hallway as his home. With all the stairs, his food and water bowls, the litter box and his scratching post out there I guess it really is home to him.

Late one night and very early the next morning Artie heard scratching at the door. He opened it to find Orphee looking up at him. Orphee began a conversation and Artie asked him to come in, opening the door wide. Orphee just stuck his head in the apartment, looked this way and that but did not venture any farther.

Hopefully his curiosity will get the better of him soon. For now, we are spending time sitting with him, talking soothingly to him, trying to get him more comfortable with being petted and handled. This is going to be a long process.

And how does Annie feel about all this? She looks at Orphee but doesn't get excited or cry anymore. Annie just gives him a sorrowful look. I guess she's wondering when he will join the family. For now, we all wait.

I'M NOT READY...

Even though Annie is doing well, I find I'm not ready to post about her surgery. At some point I will but frankly I'm still emotionally flattened by what happened. It upsets me to write even these few sentences. Everyday I look at her and wonder how much longer will I have her with me. For now, Annie is happy and she appears healthy but I'm aware the clock is ticking. I want my sweet girl to be a cancer survivor like Buddy was.

Buddy had an amazing 5 years after his cancer surgery. What will Annie have?

AS WE START 2013

2013 is the year that came in like a lion with health crises for Annie with her diagnosis of a soft tissue sarcoma and the cat with his diagnosis of FIV+.

A blog functions as an online journal but I must admit emotionally I could not post each day while Annie's health crisis was enfolding. To do so would only increase my anguish; I found it hard to come to terms with what was happening to her.

This morning, Annie underwent her second surgery. A call from the surgeon confirmed she came through it and was recovering nicely. I cannot describe all the conflicting emotions I'm feeling - suffice it to say I am worn out from the emotional roller-coaster this diagnosis has me on.

Annie remains hospitalized overnight and I expect a call late morning or early noon tomorrow to let me know when she will be released. Now all Artie and I can hope for is the biopsy results will show clean borders if we are fortunate enough to receive such good news.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

This year is closing with a lot of drama - the cat is on the mend but we now know we face an incurable chronic condition with his FIV+ diagnosis.

Annie's battle is not over yet. Her surgery failed to produce clean margins; she will need a second surgery. So Annie, Artie and I go into 2013 with her health crisis unresolved.

I will not be posting New Year's Day - the first day of the new year will be for spending with my sweet Annie, the new cat (we need to come up with an appropriate name for him) and my brother.

In closing, I will say if you're reading my post and you have furry family members of your own, review my Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas posts for tips on keeping them safe this New Year's Eve (and Day).  Since everyone will be celebrating the end of the old year and the start of the new, watch out for balloons, confetti, noise makers and alcohol in addition to everything else mentioned in my other holiday posts.

Wishing all my readers a Happy, Healthy New Year filled with peace and all manner of goodness. We'll meet back here for 2013.