The bad news: Captain Stu does have cancer. His biopsy came back showing that he has a rare form of cancer in his spleen.
The good news: It doesn't appear to have spread at this point and he is a good candidate for surgery to remove the spleen. Post-op, he can live anywhere from three months to three years. What we want to avoid is another internal bleeding episode.
The bad news: I have to convince the vet that all we want is a splenectomy and endure the litany of procedures and regimens that they will inevitably try to pressure us into.
You know, I'm starting to really resent veterinarians who use pressure tactics to drive up the cost of care, especially when your pet is in a medical crisis. The bottom line for us is this:
Yes, we care about our little guy. If he is going to die of cancer, we want him to be as comfortable as possible and have a good quality of life for the remainder of his time with our family. We already know what we are willing to do for him. I don't want a battery of tests run so that you can give me options that I'm not interested in. I'm not springing for chemotherapy for a cat, precious to me as he may be.
Tomorrow, I'll be talking to an oncologist and a surgeon about our next steps.
1 comment:
Josee, I wonder if you would indulge your blog visitors with an entry on Stu's life story so far. Kind of a rags to riches kitty, isn't he?
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