Saving Cody: An Introduction….

My name is Michelle and Cody is my now six year old Labrador Retriever (he was five when I started this blog!). We live in a house with two other boys, an orange 11 year old cat named Jimi, and a three year old all black crazy cat named Albert. I am completely outnumbered.

This is the story, actually it started as a diary i had been keeping in another format on my computer, and is now an online diary/blog of our battle against Canine Lymphoma, since his diagnosis in mid-September 2010. If you are not familiar with Blogs, the most recent posts are first, so page back to start from the beginning. I write here constantly, documenting his chemotherapy, diet, ups and downs,  the costs and the steps I am taking to, if not cure him, at least put up a fight like no other. It is a terrible prognosis. This disease spreads rapidly in dogs, they can be dead within weeks, and it is highly prevalent. The statistics are shocking. My boy is only six years old and I could not with good conscience just let him go. So this is our story. A battle that is still waging.

As you may have seen in my previous posts, 2010 had been a year of Cancer for me. It started with a friend dying of brain cancer in January, an Uncle dying in May of Lung Cancer, my own terrifying battle all summer, my step sister fighting breast cancer and having a double mastectomy in August and chemo, and culminated in September with my boy and his diagnosis. As much as i felt down trodden and beaten… this is not something I am going to take sitting down. I have never fought so hard and i sleep well at night knowing I am trying my hardest to keep him healthy, happy and alive. I made him a promise that I intend to keep…

As long as he stays the happy boy I know and love, I will keep fighting for him. But if he ever starts to suffer, becomes so sick that he is no longer enjoying his life, i will not prolong his agony for my benefit. I will let him go.

So this is our story….

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I have contemplated this for a while and many folks have said I should, so I will give it a whirl. As I am unemployed and Chemotherapy is expensive (although not as bad as it could be thank you Clint Moore Animal Hospital!!!)… if you would like to donate to help pay for Cody’s Chemotherapy it would be much appreciated. I can think of no other better Cause:

We all thank you from the bottom, top, middle and all around our hearts!

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Update…

So I caved and I gave Cody the Leukeran pill this afternoon. I really just have to trust Dr Butzer and do what he thinks is best. So I opened the giant jar of natural peanut butter that I just bought him (and me!) and mixed it up… then plopped a huge blob in the middle of his bowl. I dropped one of those nasty little pills down in the middle of it and covered it over. If you have never seen a dog eat peanut butter it is one of my simplest of joys… he loves it! Ate it right down…

Onward to the Keys!!!! And preparations!!!

I went to a local pet store here today to get an automatic pet feeder for the cats. For two reasons. One was so I don;t have to worry about them getting fed while we are away. The other is so MAYBE… just maybe they will let me sleep past 6am JUST ONCE!!!!

I also bought Cody a down jacket that was on sale for $9.00 (how could i resist it for that price) in case it is cold at night. It is cool too… not stupid looking. Trust me I did not turn into one of those South Florida Boca Raton women with the Purse Dogs in a tiara…. this is flannel inside and blue outside with a reflective strip on it. I also got him Steelers colored dog boots (they just happened to be Steelers colors!) in case there are rocks all over the campsite. He actually wore them around the house for me and did not flip out! I am glad at least I have something for his feet just in case.

Now I am really getting excited!!!

Vacillation…

I talked to Dr Butzer last night about the Leukeran. As I said we finished the month of it last Saturday and when I told him I wanted to let Cody take a break from it for the week just through the weekend and our camping trip… well let’s just say he did not like that idea. Hmmmm….

See my thing is that I want Cody to have a great weekend and feel his best. I want him to swim and be energetic… and I think the Leukeran makes him feel badly. Butzer thinks he could grow a bit tolerant to it and it will not work as well if I let him have a break.

I just don’t know how i feel about it or what to do. I need to decide today and start him on the pills again if I am going to do it… he has only missed one dose.

I found this on the web about Leukeran:

Treating cancer with Leukeran

Almost all of us have encountered cancer in our lives. Some of us may have lost someone close to cancer while some may even wage an ongoing battle with this modern plague at this very moment. Every help that we can get in our battle with cancer is more than welcome and Leukeran is a medication that can be of much help. Leukeran is a nitrogen mustard alkylating agent, which means that this chemotherapy drug is metabolized in the liver into the nitrogen mustard which is then transported through the body to the cancer cells where it does its job. It affects the very DNA and RNA of cancer cells and thus slows their growth and prevents the cancer from spreading. It also has an effect on the bone marrow cells, which makes Leukeran useful in treating certain autoimmune diseases as well, like for example nephritic syndrome. Leukeran can be used for treating various types of cancers, such as ovarian carcinoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, polycythemia vera, Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia and trophoblastic neoplasms. However, it is mainly used in treating chronic lymphatic leukemia and it is one of the most prescribed drugs for this purpose. There is one very good reason for this and that is the fact that most patients tolerate Leukeran very well and it does not cause serious side effects in the large majority of patients.

Using Leukeran to achieve best results

Leukeran is a very potent medication, as are all other chemotherapy drugs and you must never decide on your own about any changes to your dosage or the duration of your treatment. In fact, all the decisions should be left to your doctor who will know best what the best course of action is. For example, you might not even be able to take Leukeran, if you are allergic to any of the ingredients in Leukeran, or if you are pregnant and in your first trimester. Leukeran can cause serious birth defects and this is the reason why it is not used in pregnant women. You also need to inform your doctor about any other medical conditions that you have suffered from or that you are suffering from at the moment, especially if they include bone marrow depression, any infection, porphyria, kidney or liver diseases or if you have a history of head trauma or seizures. Once your Leukeran regimen starts, you need to follow the instructions given to you by your physician as closely as possible. This means that you must not skip any doses and that you should only take as much Leukeran as prescribed. As with all other chemotherapy drugs, there is always possibility that you are going to experience certain side effects, such as hair loss, certain gastrointestinal problems like nausea and vomiting; as well as compromised immune system. However, all of these side effects are reversible and there is even possibility that you are not going to experience them at all.

 

So… My dilemma is …. do I allow him to have the best weekend he can with the possibility of shortening his life….? Do I take that chance?

I am leaning towards giving him the Leukeran tonight. But I am still vacillating….

One Month In The Books…

It has been exactly one month that Cody has been on the Leukeran pills. He did pretty good all in all even though I did notice some side effects. Wouldn’t you have side effects if you were taking hardcore chemicals every other day for a month? It is so ridiculous all the things you read on the web and in these so called expert Dog Cancer books where they state that animals tolerate chemo very well with little to no side effects. Bullshit. Ok so maybe he does not lose all of his hair (although he does shed a lot) but I saw him react the very first day he took these pills. In his face, in his demeanor, in his energy level, the way he would get up after laying down for a while, how slowly he would wake up in the morning.

That being said I was about to take him in to see Butzer today to have a CBC done and to basically get his opinion of taking him off the Leukeran for a week. But I thought… why spend $150.00 to get confirmation of what I am going to do anyway? I am his Mama, and I am taking him off the Leukeran for a week so that he can regain his health and vitality so that when I take him CAMPING IN THE KEYS (!!!!!!) next weekend he can have a blast!!!!

Yes that’s right! I got a camping spot ON THE BEACH in Bahia Honda State Park for three nights and four days! Cody will be sleeping under the stars and enjoying the beach and…. I will be teaching him how to sit in the kayak with us as we paddle around the beautiful tropical waters of the Keys!

I wanted to make sure he felt his best for this trip. He has never been camping before and I know he will love it. I do not want him full of toxic chemicals the entire weekend and feeling bad, as this will wear him out even more than he would normally be worn out from such sensory overload.

So I have a call in to Butzer to see if he thinks Cody will be ok to start the Leukeran again after we get back. My only concern is that he may build an immunity to it and it will no longer work for him. But again… so be it. The most important thing for me with him is that he fully enjoys his life.

I do have some things to figure out though… I need to make sure that his feet don’t get too sore from walking on the rocks again like the last time we went to the Keys. His feet were just awful where he was limping quite a bit. Not sure if I need to find him padded socks or at the very least I will try to sweep the rocks out of our campsite for him and clear the grounds. I also know that the beach comes with the possibility of fleas… so I am bringing his Dr Bronner’s Eucalyptus Shampoo to wash him off since he is not on Heartworm or any flea protection. He can’t take any of that with his immune system, it will make him sick.

Very exciting!!! I will be sure and take lots of pictures of the smiling boy for you all…. he is going to have a blast!

Leukeran….

Leukeran….

  

I can tell Cody is not feeling well. His color on his nose and around his eyes is more purplish grey than normal. He is more lethargic. Sleepy. He has a harder time waking up in the mornings…

This is where I get heady…

Am I doing the right thing. The whole point of treatment is to keep him happy and feeling good for as long as possible. If he is not feeling well… is it worth it? What is the line in the sand for feeling good or not so good? Puking? He is not horribly sick right now but he has only had three doses so far including this morning. I guess if he gets worse I will determine whether or not to continue. He is ok… don’t get me wrong. And I am hyper sensitive to his moods and behavior. I know my dog. I just worry. Of course. Some of what I have read on the web has me a bit concerned about side effects I can not quite see:

“Chlorambucil works similar to chemotherapy that is sure to have issues with side effects. Bone marrow suppression is one of the most common of the adverse reactions that animals encounter. This can lead to anemia, or/and a decrease in the WBC count, though the animals will regain health when the medication is discontinued. Also, the hairy breeds in cats and dogs can experience hair loss.”

I do believe his purplish grey color is anemia as I have seen that before in him. This pill is SO tiny! It amazes me how potent some drugs are. I am not supposed to touch it although I did not know that until today… Actually that is a lie. As soon as I got the drug I thought I should probably not touch it but that was fleeting. I am also supposed to stay away from contact with his saliva, urine and poop for 48 hours after he takes it. HUH? He takes it every other day! Am I supposed to get no kisses for the month he is on it? That is ridiculous and not going to happen.

Whatever. We are in this together and it is what it is.

So I am in monitor mode. I am watching him like a hawk… making sure he is not showing other side effects like dizziness, coordination issues, hallucinating. Yes these are all side effects I have read about. Nice huh? This is stuff that if I see it… he is done with this drug immediately.

Onward…

Leukeran And Possibilities…

Cody and I went to see Dr Butzer today and I am pretty happy with the results. He is 60 lbs and holding strong which is a great sign. His CBC came out pretty good! His whites are at the just below middle range at 5.84 (6.0 is mid range normal), his reds are 6.41 and platelets are 2.68 – both normal.

Butzer checked his glands which are barely there, but they are there. I told him about Cody’s crazy weekend and we talked about how that may be why his glands are a bit swollen. Really if he had not known Cody has cancer he would say the glands are in the normal range. Happy about that news too!!!

So we decided to start Cody on the Leukeran pills. He gets 2mg every OTHER day and I got 15 2mg pills. He has a month’s worth and I will monitor his reaction to them and see how he does, then bring him back in to see the Dr after the month is out to get a CBC and see where he is. That will be the interesting part since that mile marker is when he normally gets the glands back in full force and another dose of chemo. He usually makes it about two months. We are hoping the Leukeran may lengthen that time.

Onward and upward!!!!!