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Lymphoma Diagnosis 😢

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Tea2018

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Hello everyone

I have a gorgeous 3 year old piggy called Pearl who recently developed a large lump under her chin. I thought it was an abscess and wasn’t too concerned and booked her in at the vets.

On Friday I took her to the exotics vet and she found other lumps on her lymph nodes and said she thought it was cancer (Lymphoma). I was so shocked and wasn’t expecting it. I cried 😢 She said it’s palliative care for her now and it could be anything from a few weeks to a few months until the cancer takes her 😞

I’ve been giving steroids for a week to see how she gets on, mainly to reduce the size of the lumps on her neck so she can stay comfortable 😢 At the moment she seems ok and is eating and has had floor time every day since her diagnosis. She assured me that she doesn’t think she’s in pain. She’s had two lots of steroids (liquid via syringe). The vet mentioned chemotherapy as an option, but I really don’t want to put her through that -although she said it’s different to human chemotherapy?

I just feel so sad. I suffer from anxiety and the thought of watching her slowly go downhill and not knowing how long I’ll have with her is making is awful.

Has anyone been though this and have any advice? I really want her to be with her 2 friends at home when she passes, but then if I see her suffering, I’ll want to take her to be pts. The lumps in her neck are very big and I’m worried that she’s not drinking so have put a bowl in her indoor cage in addition to a bottle. I’m also worried that she may eventually struggle to breathe 😞
 

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Sending huge hugs.

Your little one is gorgeous. All you can do is follow the vets advice and make sure she is comfortable. I think my snoopy may have had the same as your girl. He developed swelling in the neck area. We put him on palliative care too. the vet wasn't sure what was wrong. Just try and spend as much quality time doing fun things that she enjoys. It's so hard, but you know your girl best. My Snoopy passed at home peacefully.
 
I'm so sorry, I also find the not knowing makes things worse. I've had a few with lymphoma and other cancers. One lasted a year after lumps were found in his lymph nodes and the vet said he likely had lymphoma, he ended up having to be pts due to a bladder tumour. The last one we had with lymphoma, Panda, passed just 2 days after her diagnosis. So it really is just a roll of the dice, which is incredibly unhelpful.

Make every day count, but don't worry if there are "normal" days where you don't do anything special too, she does not know she is sick, or palliative. Fingers crossed she is able to pass peacefully at home with her friends when the time does come.
 
Julie M said:
Sending huge hugs.

Your little one is gorgeous. All you can do is follow the vets advice and make sure she is comfortable. I think my snoopy may have had the same as your girl. He developed swelling in the neck area. We put him on palliative care too. the vet wasn't sure what was wrong. Just try and spend as much quality time doing fun things that she enjoys. It's so hard, but you know your girl best. My Snoopy passed at home peacefully.
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Thank you for your kind reply and I’m
so sorry to hear about your Snoopy (a wonderful name by the way!) What kind of palliative care did Snoopy receive, if you don’t mind me asking? Was he ill for long? My main concern is that I don’t want her to suffer in any way X
 
Eriathwen said:
I'm so sorry, I also find the not knowing makes things worse. I've had a few with lymphoma and other cancers. One lasted a year after lumps were found in his lymph nodes and the vet said he likely had lymphoma, he ended up having to be pts due to a bladder tumour. The last one we had with lymphoma, Panda, passed just 2 days after her diagnosis. So it really is just a roll of the dice, which is incredibly unhelpful.

Make every day count, but don't worry if there are "normal" days where you don't do anything special too, she does not know she is sick, or palliative. Fingers crossed she is able to pass peacefully at home with her friends when the time does come.
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I’m so sorry to hear that you’ve been through what I’m going through, more than once. I need to remember that Pearl doesn’t know that she’s ill. She’s living in the moment - totally unaware. Thank you for your lovely advice.

Wow, one of your piggies was with you for a year after diagnosis? Was he on any kind of medication? I know it’s unlikely to be that long 😞 I keep checking on her all the time and need to relax a little I think. I just still think I’m in shock at the moment. I’ve had piggies all throughout my life and never heard of lymphoma or knew about the signs. I felt bad I hadn’t spotted the other lumps around her body but the vet said they can come up very fast. I noticed she had a bigger chin a couple of weeks ago but thought she had a bit of a double chin (my sister and I even laughed about it) as she was getting much fatter. I now know that that was likely bloating due to the cancer.
 
Tea2018 said:
Thank you for your kind reply and I’m
so sorry to hear about your Snoopy (a wonderful name by the way!) What kind of palliative care did Snoopy receive, if you don’t mind me asking? Was he ill for long? My main concern is that I don’t want her to suffer in any way X
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The vet gave him a strong painkiller. Gabapentin (I think) and also metacam it was over 5 years ago so it's hard to remember. I was just to give him painkillers and monitor him. Also he was being syringe fed as he'd stopped eating enough.
He had about a month. But he declined rapidly once he became ill,. stopping eating enough was what happened initially. They're all different though so please don't think your girl will only get that.
 
Tea2018 said:
I’m so sorry to hear that you’ve been through what I’m going through, more than once. I need to remember that Pearl doesn’t know that she’s ill. She’s living in the moment - totally unaware. Thank you for your lovely advice.

Wow, one of your piggies was with you for a year after diagnosis? Was he on any kind of medication? I know it’s unlikely to be that long 😞 I keep checking on her all the time and need to relax a little I think. I just still think I’m in shock at the moment. I’ve had piggies all throughout my life and never heard of lymphoma or knew about the signs. I felt bad I hadn’t spotted the other lumps around her body but the vet said they can come up very fast. I noticed she had a bigger chin a couple of weeks ago but thought she had a bit of a double chin (my sister and I even laughed about it) as she was getting much fatter. I now know that that was likely bloating due to the cancer.
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Oddly enough he wasn't on any medication, he was so well in himself I started to think the diagnosis was wrong and almost forgot he had it until he very suddenly went downhill.

I had another one who lived 9 months, she on the other hand was on about 4 different medications by the end, and I was quite obsessive with checking her, she developed lymph node lumps over night, I checked her daily for new lumps and when they came, it was incredibly quick so your vet is right, they can come up out of nowhere very quickly so they're easy to miss/easy to think you've missed them when you do spot them.
 
I just wanted to send my sympathy. My Biscuit (on the right in my avatar photo) passed away from lymphoma a year ago this month. Just like you I was totally shocked when the vet told me the diagnosis as I knew something was wrong but had no idea it was so serious.

I know all cases are different and I can't give you any advice, but in Biscuit's case she went downhill very suddenly. The day before she died she was running around and eating normally, the next day there was a sudden deterioration and she died peacefully in my arms. She didn't appear to be in any pain ❤️ .
 
LondonLady said:
I just wanted to send my sympathy. My Biscuit (on the right in my avatar photo) passed away from lymphoma a year ago this month. Just like you I was totally shocked when the vet told me the diagnosis as I knew something was wrong but had no idea it was so serious.

I know all cases are different and I can't give you any advice, but in Biscuit's case she went downhill very suddenly. The day before she died she was running around and eating normally, the next day there was a sudden deterioration and she died peacefully in my arms. She didn't appear to be in any pain ❤️ .
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Thanks for sharing your story with me and I’m so sorry for your loss of lovely Biscuit. What a beautiful piggy! I am now preparing for any situation including walking up to her cage one day to see her suddenly going downhill when she was absolutely fine the previous day, or perhaps I will have her in my life for a good while longer. I can only make her life as amazing as possible while she is here and give her the steroids every day. The good news is that her lumps aren’t stopping her from drinking from the water bottle so that’s good 😊
 
I’m so sorry. My little skinny pig Jellybaby was diagnosed with lymphoma - with no hair his lumps were very obvious when they appeared. He was prescribed Prednisolone and although his weight gradually declined over a couple of months due to reduced appetite he was mostly still very active. I did supplement with critical care which he enjoyed. Like others he went downhill very quickly within the space of an hour. Enjoy the time you have with your gorgeous Pearl and take it a day at a time 😍
 
Getting that kind of diagnosis feels as if the bottom has fallen out of the world.
You have begun to grieve for your beautiful Pearl.
She doesn’t know she’s ill so enjoy every day.

When my Jemimah was diagnosed with a tumour palliative care was the only option for her.
She lived happily with her cage mates, got her favourite foods far more often than usual and only needed Metacam in the last few days.
She died peacefully one night in her own home.

Holding you in my heart ♥️
 
Bertie & Jelly said:
I’m so sorry. My little skinny pig Jellybaby was diagnosed with lymphoma - with no hair his lumps were very obvious when they appeared. He was prescribed Prednisolone and although his weight gradually declined over a couple of months due to reduced appetite he was mostly still very active. I did supplement with critical care which he enjoyed. Like others he went downhill very quickly within the space of an hour. Enjoy the time you have with your gorgeous Pearl and take it a day at a time 😍
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I’m so sorry to hear about Jellybaby 😞 Thank you for sharing your story to help me. It can’t be easy reliving it. I felt Pearl’s lumps tonight and it seems like the lump on her neck is actual several lumps all today which feels like one huge mass 😞 She has small lumps under 2 of her legs legs but it’s her neck that is by far the worst lumpy area.

She is still good today - eating watermelon and I saw her drinking from the water bottle earlier so I know she’s still drinking now, which is good. I was concerned her lumps were causing her to struggle with it. In everyone’s experience, did your piggies develop more lumps as time went on? Did they get bigger? I don’t want her to struggle to breathe 😞 Also, can you please let me know how long your piggies were with you from diagnosis to passing over the rainbow bridge? X
 
Merab said:
Getting that kind of diagnosis feels as if the bottom has fallen out of the world.
You have begun to grieve for your beautiful Pearl.
She doesn’t know she’s ill so enjoy every day.

When my Jemimah was diagnosed with a tumour palliative care was the only option for her.
She lived happily with her cage mates, got her favourite foods far more often than usual and only needed Metacam in the last few days.
She died peacefully one night in her own home.

Holding you in my heart ♥️
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That is my wish for her - to pass peacefully at home - not at a scary unfamiliar vets. However, if she’s in pain, I don’t want her to suffer at all, so will of course take her if she’s in distress. I’m so sorry to hear about Jemimah - I have like you said, already started grieving. I never thought she’d be my next piggy to pass. I had a guinea called Maisie who I rescued with her - and she was 8 when she passed just a few months ago. My heart still feels heavy from that experience.

She passed on me as I held her…after I had just happened to go to the cage and see her wobbling 😞 She died within minutes on my chest. It was midnight and I’d just got up to make a drink and thought I’d check on them. I always think it was meant to be so I could be with her at the end x
 
Tea2018 said:
Hello everyone

I have a gorgeous 3 year old piggy called Pearl who recently developed a large lump under her chin. I thought it was an abscess and wasn’t too concerned and booked her in at the vets.

On Friday I took her to the exotics vet and she found other lumps on her lymph nodes and said she thought it was cancer (Lymphoma). I was so shocked and wasn’t expecting it. I cried 😢 She said it’s palliative care for her now and it could be anything from a few weeks to a few months until the cancer takes her 😞

I’ve been giving steroids for a week to see how she gets on, mainly to reduce the size of the lumps on her neck so she can stay comfortable 😢 At the moment she seems ok and is eating and has had floor time every day since her diagnosis. She assured me that she doesn’t think she’s in pain. She’s had two lots of steroids (liquid via syringe). The vet mentioned chemotherapy as an option, but I really don’t want to put her through that -although she said it’s different to human chemotherapy?

I just feel so sad. I suffer from anxiety and the thought of watching her slowly go downhill and not knowing how long I’ll have with her is making is awful.

Has anyone been though this and have any advice? I really want her to be with her 2 friends at home when she passes, but then if I see her suffering, I’ll want to take her to be pts. The lumps in her neck are very big and I’m worried that she’s not drinking so have put a bowl in her indoor cage in addition to a bottle. I’m also worried that she may eventually struggle to breathe 😞
Click to expand...

I'm so sorry to hear about your Pearl being diagnosed with lymphoma. My piggy Vegas was diagnosed with the same thing on Feb 2023. Sadly, we only had her for another 3 weeks after her diagnosis. But she only really went bad on her last day, the time she showed and told us it's time to help her through. Here is my thread about it. Lymphoma

I know my Vegas only had a short time with us after her diagnosis, but every piggy handles things differently. Some piggies of the forum which were in the same situation lived longer than my Vegas. But I was thankful that we had 3 extra weeks with Vegas to make her happy and give her loads of cuddles and kisses. So take each day as an extra day to surround Pearl with all the love you can give her. Make more memories that you can cherish. I know it's an anxious time, but she will tell and show you when it's time. Big hugs to you and Pearl. :hug: ❤️❤️
 
Tea2018 said:
I’m so sorry to hear about Jellybaby 😞 Thank you for sharing your story to help me. It can’t be easy reliving it. I felt Pearl’s lumps tonight and it seems like the lump on her neck is actual several lumps all today which feels like one huge mass 😞 She has small lumps under 2 of her legs legs but it’s her neck that is by far the worst lumpy area.

She is still good today - eating watermelon and I saw her drinking from the water bottle earlier so I know she’s still drinking now, which is good. I was concerned her lumps were causing her to struggle with it. In everyone’s experience, did your piggies develop more lumps as time went on? Did they get bigger? I don’t want her to struggle to breathe 😞 Also, can you please let me know how long your piggies were with you from diagnosis to passing over the rainbow bridge? X
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I first noticed a lump on his tummy in July 22 but the vet said watch and wait as they thought it was probably a fatty lump. A few more started appearing a couple of months later mostly on his back but also around his neck all which were regularly vet checked. He was officially diagnosed in October and we had two more lovely months with him. So although it was 2 months from diagnosis, it was about 5 months from the first lump. The lumps in his neck didn’t seem to affect his breathing. He just suddenly ran out of steam so to speak and he was PTS. It’s human nature to worry about whether ‘today will be the day’, you may get one more day, you may get a few weeks or months and the grief can be overwhelming. Love your gorgeous Pearl for the remaining time you have with her. Thinking of you x
 
Hi everyone

Just an update on Pearl. She’s had a weeks steroids now and is still eating and drinking. She seems to be slowing down a bit but I sometimes wonder if I’m overanalysing her as I’m watching her all the time. She’s always been quite lazy.

Can anyone please tell me what your piggies were like on steroids? Were they more sleepy? The vet insists she doesn’t think she’s in pain and the medication will help her to feel better and feel like eating more/be more alert etc. What exactly will the steroids be doing for her?

She’s had floor time today and seemed ok running around with her 2 friends - running around the Christmas tree 😃

I’ve noticed that she’s not been able to clean herself as well, especially under the chin so she keeps getting an orange (carrot) or red chin (watermelon and tomato). I want to help her clean herself but also don’t want to cause her any discomfort or put any cleaning shampoo near her mouth (special pet shampoo).

Her nose also looks a bit brown but not runny, so I’m wondering if this is because her little legs can’t reach to clean her face now because her lumps are so big on her chin/neck 🥺

I just want her to be as comfortable as possible for however long she’s here 😢
 
So sorry you and your piggy are going through this. Pearl is absolutely beautiful.
 
I remember that the vet said that the steroids should increase the appetite and the activity when he prescribed them to Nicky.
Nicky and Lea were eating until the very end but were "sleeping" all the time except if I put food exactely in front of their nose/mouth. Both didn't want to move any more just before I had them PTS.
I wasn't under the impression that they were in pain but the enormous swelling of the lymph nodes must have been uncomfortable.
I tried not to handle them more than necessary in the end because I didn't want to put any pressure on the swollen lymph nodes.
My greatest fear was that the swelling would get so big that they couldn't swallow or breath any more.

Holding you and Pearl in my heart!
 
Beautiful Pearl.
I lost my Bob to lymphoma in August. Decided to give him the blessing as soon as we got the diagnosis because I didnt want him (or me) to suffer those last weeks. But it wasnt that easy to just take that decision, just like your Pearl he was still eating and begging for food and I can relate to the feeling that you want to let her sleep in peace at home with her sisters. Holding you both in my heart ❤️
 
Pearl’s poops have been an odd shape today (thin and long) and a little sloppy compared to normal 😞 I don’t know what to do for the best for her because how can the vet know for sure that she’s not suffering after just a ten minute appointment?
 
Tea2018 said:
Pearl’s poops have been an odd shape today (thin and long) and a little sloppy compared to normal 😞 I don’t know what to do for the best for her because how can the vet know for sure that she’s not suffering after just a ten minute appointment?
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Go with your gut,you know her better than anyone.I think the fact she's still eating is a good sign but I think you'll know when the time is right.I'm so sorry you're going through this xx
 
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