Confused and Overwhelmed-Diagnosed Anal Sac Carcinoma (Woody has passed)

Wow! What a day you and Woody have had!

We'd love to see Woody running off with the mike cover, it must have been a real hoot! Maybe they will give you a link so you can see the video when done, if so, you must share!

Too bad the vet can't let you relax, but has to come up with more scary stuff to worry about. Just take it one step at a time, don't despair, and let us share the worry with you.

It sounds to me like it was just as well the anal sacs were removed; it seems like they cause nothing but trouble, anyway.

Hang in there, and enjoy Woody's recovery from the surgery.

Tracy:
Woody was really full of himself today. He deserved to have a little fun at the camera mans expense. I am so sorry that you now have more worries, but we are here with you thru it all. Did Woody have an MRI or an Ultra Sound? I am wondering why they cannot locate this tumor. I know the MRI is the gold standard for finding many small things starting up that is why I wondered if he had one. I hope they can soon get to the bottom of this. The surgery you had done on Woody was necessary as they said it would likely end up there anyway, so best to get rid of it now. I know you have been thru an awful lot. Pray on it and ask God for mercy for Woody. I am still saying special prayers for him so God willing you will get this all behind you. Please take care of yourself I know this has been hard on you. Blessings
Patti

Patti - Woody has had 2 US, but no MRI scan, I did ask today about an MRI scan to see if it could be found and Ian told me it would be a waste of money as if the primary tumour was that small and not found on a US it was unlikely to be picked up on a MRI. He also told me that in 20 years of working in oncology apart from Woody he had one other patient that they couldn,t find the primary tumour in trust Woody to be his second lol

I briefly spoke to Emma my IMS on the way out today and she has said the same sometimes you just can,t find the primary tumour but she is adamant in her opion that the tumour was in the anal sacs I don,t know anymore what to believe what I do know is that Woody still has cancer somewhere in his body and I just need to try and deal with that, I,m not naïve and knew that Terry would win the game sooner or later I had just hoped it would be much later, although I have not written the little guy out just yet and with his spirit I,m sure he will exceed the 9 - 12 months that they gave him today. So for the next few days or until I hear from the hospital I am going to get Woody nice and strong and we,re going to have some fun and enjoy life :)

Awww, so glad that Woody had a good time! He was due.

I don't know, it seems strange that they can't find a primary tumor, but say that there are cancer cells still there? I wasn't sure about that.
You can still end up having a long time with Woody, just depends on what is what. Lets see what they say and take it from there.

We're all right here with you! Love the Woody stories btw. They make me smile every time.

hugs,
Sharlene and Molly Muffin

Morning I went to my own bed last night ah bliss lol. Woody slept most of last night but when I got up I couldn't find him:eek: I searched the living room, kitchen under my bed his usual place so shouted on him nothing I frantically was pulling cupboards open just in case and eventually found him locked in the bathroom a room he never goes in but by the look of it he went to poo and has some his managed to close the door over oops don't know his long he had been in there silly cookie.

Ian has called this morning and Sam the pathologist is running the tests today so maybe get answers tomorrow. They also are talking about putting him on some meds to stop him straining to poo as this isn't good he strains to poo for ages until I stop him as nothing is coming out Ian said its as if he feels like he needs to go all the time.

Tracy:
These dogs are real characters aren't they? That is so funny Woody locking himself in the bathroom. At least her knew to pooh in the bathroom! I am hoping you will get some relief from all stress of this soon. It must have felt wonderful being in your own bed? Hope you and Woody enjoy a good day together. Blessings
Patti

Afternoon all, I,ve had Ian the oncologist on the phone today bit shocked as its Saturday. My brain hurts after the conversation of about an hour and I can,t take it all in. I,ll try and summaries for you.

1. He first asked about Woody,s pooing, its been getting better after I changed him to his old food again, but not enough so he will need to go onto meds for it, as Ian said its not good. He will contact my own vet on Monday to prescribe the meds Woody needs.

2. The pathologist has re stained the anal sacs and did some more in depth testing and Woody hasn,t got Anal Sac Carcinoma and never did :( So I put him through that for nothing I,m angry with myself. After explaining this to Ian he said that the fluid flow from the left medial iliac lymph node was heading towards the anal sacs so Woody would have needed the surgery in the future.

3. What they have diagnosed Woody with is a Nuroendocrine (sp) Cancer. They believe that the primary tumour is in the right Adrenal Gland which is 9.9 mm but can,t understand why it was the left medial iliac lymph node that was infected, they told me it should have been a lymph node in the right side. Ian has said that this is very rare and in his career has Woody is only his second patient like this. Ian said that Woody, s bloods were all normal and showed nothing which is a big surprise to him.

What he plans to do is in 3 steps

1. Urine sample to check creatine levels to rule out cushings once and for all, as all tests say he hasn,t got cushings but ruling out everything.
2. Research the disease in humans to see if there is any medication chemo etc that Woody and his messed up system could tolerate in tablet form to take at home safe stressing him out going into hospital all the time.
3. Re - scan Woody in a month to see what is going on, or sooner if required.

He will consult with my own vet on Monday regarding all this and speak with me again next week. He is also going to contact his old professor in oncology down in Liverpool England for some advice. Only Woody could be this big a conundrum to the specialist :)

Woody is doing great and getting stronger everyday, and is back to playing and is allowed 2 x 10 min walks per day and he is loving life just like I want him to do :D

Well, Tracy, it does sound as if you may have headed off something tougher on Woody by having this surgery now, tho I can totally sympathize with the feelings you had on hearing about the anal glands at first. :eek::(:(

Is he a possible candidate for an adrenalectomy after he recovers and is that even an option for this type cancer? Is this something you would consider if he is a candidate? Goodness, that's a lot to take in! And yet another Wonder Dog on K9C who makes the vets earn every penny they get! :p

I'm glad he is enjoying life! :) That's the most important factor no matter what is going on and he has the perfect mom to make sure this is the norm for him. Those moments when we see that light shining in their eyes, that silly grin on their faces, the pep in their steps makes it all the rest so worth it.

Hugs,
Leslie and the gang

Wow, that is a lot to take in. I hope that this surgery Now will actually turn out to be beneficial, in that he won't have to have it in the future. Still it is a lot to take in.

The best thing and most important at this moment is that Woody is doing great. He loves life, he's recovering, he continues to make his mum laugh and enjoy life too.

Sometimes, its the little things that are most important.

hugs,
Sharlene and Molly Muffin

Leslie - There not sure surgery is viable which is why he is going to do some research into this, he says its quite rare but I don,t know. If surgery was an option I would consider it but not until Woody is healed properly. He is better but not completely healed he has a tiny bit of his abdominal wound still needing to heal and I need to get this pooing sorted out as it does wipe him out at times.

I have asked Ian to send me a complete report on all of this, as I,m sure I,ve forgotten some things, as I get a bit bamboozled with all the technical terms and long words that he uses (thick or what lol). I will speak with my own vet next week who is good at putting it in laymans terms for me.

After last weeks hospital appointment I had pretty much resigned myself to the fact that there was nothing else they could do to help Woody so I was going for quality over quantity of life and boy was he going to have quality. Now I still feel the same way and have explained this to the oncologist that it is very important to me that Woody has a good quality of life albeit it may be shorter than most but this is a must for me, and woody. He has assured me that they will not force/point me in the direction for their own gain and they too have Woody,s quality of life at the forefront. Now with all this I feel like I,m back at square one I know Woody has cancer and won,t have a long life but I don,t want a life of hospitals, tests, poking and prodding I want him to be ...... a dog, running, playing, shouting at the rabbits annoying next doors cat and snuggling with me, but if I can extend that would I, I just don,t know anymore I,m as the thread title says confused and overwhelmed.

We went out for dinner tonight just me and Woody to the local pub and Woody had a meal of rice, peas, and turkey cooked by the chef and he loved it, and all the attention he was getting he has become somewhat of a doggy celebrity in the village and boy was he playing up to it, but he was beautifully behaved. So now its 1 am in the morning and I,m having the "its bedtime" conversation with him and hes giving it "oh no its playtime" he,s not happy that I,m on the computer and ignoring him I,m so sure if he was human he would have flipped me the finger and stormed out the door by now lol :D

I have added some pics of him in his recovery album to show how well he is looking