Lymphoma Scares My Mom

July 28th 

Before I received my 2nd chemotherapy treatment my oncologist checked me out first.  He said that I was bright, alert, responsive, and hydrated. He said there was a "marked reduction in size of all peripheral nodes such that all of the mandibular (lower jaw area), prescapular (in front of or between the shoulder blades), and popliteal (behind the knees) lymph nodes were now within normal limits." He also saw that I had "no pain or organomegaly (enlargement of organs) on my abdominal palpation."   My heart and lungs were clear and the remainder of the exam was considered to be within normal limits. Again I felt fine that night and the next day. It wasn't until the 3rd or 4th day that I began to feel a bit tired and restless. I'm just glad I wasn't vomiting or had diarrhea....my stools were certainly alot softer than I preferred. 

That week my mom began acting strange.  Sometimes when she petted me or looked at me she'd just start crying.  I didn't know why .....because I felt fine....just a little tired sometimes.  Then she seemed to put all of her energy in front of that computer for hours at time trying to learn about my disease.  How complicated could it be I thought? The next day she switched my dog food to all organic.  She also stopped giving me  "Comfortis" to get rid of my fleas and instead switched to something "natural." She did this because she found an FDA warning saying that Comfortis should not be mixed with a drug called ivermectin which was the main ingredient in my heart guard medication. I don't know why my mom was making all these changes.  I think she just wanted to cover all areas to make sure I was healthy. 

Discovery of Lumps

July 25th: Hi, my name is Daisy.  My mom  was hugging me one day, like she usually does, but this time she felt two lumps under my neck that weren't there before.  The next day the vet took some tests and then on July 25th, 2011 the doctor said i had  "canine lymphoma" and needed to see an oncologist. The next day we saw one at the Miami Veterinarian Specialists hospital.  His name was Dr. Lurie.  Dr. Lurie surpassed ALL of my moms expectations.  She said he had a good bed side manner, well educated and very professional.  After talking with Dr. Lurie mom realized that if this cancer went untreated it would kill me within 30-60 days.   The doc recommended chemotherapy which he said would likely extend my life another 6-12 months or so.  He said they could possibly extend my life an additional year and possibly more by adding two 1/2 body radiation treatments. Although my mom always said she would choose alternative/holistic methods over traditional medicine.... I think the thought of me dying so quickly must have scared her because she started me on chemotherapy the next day.  The doc said that I might have some side effects like diarrhea or vomiting. He said most dogs handle chemotherapy "quite well" and don't feel the side effects until a couple of days later.  He said i would likely be really thirsty and hungry while on prednisone.  He told us to return two days later for my second treatment of chemotherapy. I went home that night and actually felt quite fine.  As a matter of fact I even went to my dog agility class that night!  And I'll tell you I must have had an A+ run because everyone was really rooting for me and clapping!  ...or else my mom must have told them i was sick.