a quickie lucky update before i do the bedtime stuff.

there is a most definite very large mass at the pyloric junction at the base of the stomach...our vet feels that it is cancerous. there is another mass in the lung area..either in the lung itself or surrounding the liver on the other side of the lung cavity and while it is hard to determine which exact location, it is visibly there.

lucky is still running a low grade fever and her chest still is full of a bunch of crap and is not clear from her recent pneumonia.

it appears that the pneumonia is secondary to an underlying cancer...the pneumonia may clear with continued antibiotics or it may not. it may be that the antibiotics are just pushing it back enough for her to feel better but not to fully clear. it may be that as soon as her antibiotics are finished or when she has built up a tolerance to them, the infection may again, rage out of control.

so this was what i wanted...not a crystal ball with all of the irrefutable answers...but simply a pretty good idea of what was happening and why it was happening so we could formulate a plan of care.

her short term plan is of course to try to help her fully clear the pneumonia, this will directly impact her quality of life in the short term. our long term goal is now palliative care, to help her maintain a good quality of life for as long as we can.

there will be no more trips to emergency unless it is a middle of the night crises to help her pass...we will not vet her to death to know everything that could possibly be going on inside of her now. we will be moving to symptom control and seeking to help her find and feel clinically well.
be it for a few weeks or months or however long, it does not matter as long as her life is not a burden for her to somehow manage. she has a follow up appointment in 10 days to redo the blood work and see where her WBC stands and check her chest again. and then we move to full hospice care.

everyone, please keep in mind that lucky still does have pneumonia and she is not out of the woods by any stretch of the imagination...she is not to be out in the rain, she is not to be chilled, overheated or stressed...right now her lungs are still full of crap. she is not to be taken for walks until she is medically well enough, and that is for me to determine on the advice of our vets. there is a sign posted in the mp room that clearly states no walks, no treats for lucky right now (this means none...not some or just a little or just a short walk or anything else..it means no walks, no treats period)...she may be brushed or cuddled or gently played with in the mp room where she lives, she may have in and out priviledges to her small outside yard...but that is it for now.

if anything changes i will let everyone know...until then, lets do our best to keep her feeling happy and well and try to get rid of the pneumonia for good if we can.