Recurring Lump, Other Options?

[Olivitree]

Hello peeps, this may well be the last post I ever do for Tabby, my old lady of 6 and a half, she's got a number of problems at the moment but we are dealing with most.

I'm keen to know if anyone knows any methods of dealing with/reducing the size of a recurring lump/tumor other than surgery?

She had surgery a few months ago, since we have had trouble with her eating, (Not teeth related, I had her checked by two different vets) I now have her on a pellet and porridge oat mix that she loves but she still does odd gaping motions occasionally and slows right down. Her gut hasn't yet recovered, she's on fibreplex and biolapis, to little affect. Weights about 690 grams, use to weigh about 1000 to 900 grams. Cataract has developed in one eye, nothing to be done about that. Had a minor case of feet sores when i swapped briefly over to wood shavings as we had issues with our washing machineso she's on antibiotics just to clear up the last of that infection that developed there and changed straight back to fleece.

The main issue, is that her surgically removed lump, has returned, I think both me and the vet are really disappointed by this as he did quite an extensive removal of tissue around the area including the lump and he said he couldn't have taken much more away.

If anyone has any tips on the other issues I'll welcome them though I've tried almost everything I could possibly do for most of the issues, her weight is going up slowly but gut isn't stablising until I get her off the antibiotics.

The vets are telling me there's nothing left to be done really except to make her comfortable until a point where she isn't happy anymore.

I believe they said its fairly fibrous tissue, fairly heavy blood supply, bleeds easily and quite a bit if the skin is broken.

Really tried so hard for this little old lady and she's been fighting just as hard as I have to keep going, she still wheeks at me every time I walk by for food and bumbles about the cage, still leads the herd when they have floor time. Just finding it hard to give up when she's so determined to keep going regardless. The vet has been fantastic too, he hasn't charged me for about 5 visits bar the medication since her surgery, making it basically pointless that I paid for the surgery at all and he's done so much to try and get her back to good health. Pretty devastating to hear "thats all we can do", I suspected it was coming, just didn't want it to.

Thanks folks, a straight "no there is nothing more to be done" is fine I just wanted to gather up any other possibilities before we settle in to just care and keeping comfy.

 

[madguinealady]

Am so sorry she isn't doing very well at the moment.Don't have any advice You will know when she has had enough

 

[sport_billy]

I am really sorry to here this. Poor little Tabby.

I am tagging in our h&I bods for you @helen105281 @Adelle @Abi_nurse @furryfriends (TEAS) @Elwickcavies for any ideas

We had to go down the palliative care root with our elderly girl Cookie last year, her tumor could not be removed so we knew we just had to make the most of the time we had with her. With the vet we devised a pain relief plan to suit her and made sure she was pain free and comfortable until the end. You obviously have a good vet and that is important, discuss all options and I know choosing not to fight anymore is so difficult and painful but sometimes no matter what we try we can't save them.

Make everyday a good day for her and enjoy her. Huge hugs x

 

[lauraboara]

Really sorry to hear about Tabby's illness. Every piggie and lump is different but it may be a case of coming to terms with enjoying her last few weeks. We had to let one of my boys go this summer and it still feels very raw but it was the right time for him - he had a cancerous lump. It was removed October 15 with a big margin of tissue but it did return a few months later as an internal tumour - there must have been a few cells deeper down. I don't know if this is helpful but this is his thread from when I found out that the cancer had returned
https://www.theguineapigforum.co.uk/posts/1900793/
Even though it was really sad, we did have some lovely cuddles and he had some great times on the lawn in the last weeks. Practically, I made sure he had loads of painkiller / anti-inflammatory, could reach everything he needed, had clean beds very regularly and he had top up syringe feeds to keep up his strength (he loved them so that was easy).
All the best for you and Tabby - not easy but you just have to think about outcomes, quality of life and keep discussing with vet.

 

[helen105281]

I'm sorry that it's not better news. I would take each day at a time and make sure she is comfortable and still able to do all things piggy. I know I always say this but let her be your guide, she will let you know when it is time to make a decision if that's the path you need to take.

 

[Olivitree]

Thank you everybody, I appreciate everyone's support, its just hard to accept when she's still such a feisty little old lady. Just going to try and do my best for her now and keep an eye on things, I think it'll be clear when its time, she's so happy at the moment it'll be quite obvious when she's not ok anymore. I've emailed my vet, hopefully we'll be able to talk through a final care plan for her. Helps to know that I've tried everything I can.

 

[GPTV]

sorry to hear about Tabby, did the vet do any tests on the lump that was removed? was it cancerous?
where about's on her body was the lump & is the new one growing in the same place or on a different part of her body?

whilst she has a good quality of life then keep fighting with her, she'll let you know when she can no longer go on. make sure she has pain relief at the moment & that it's sufficient to last throughout the day/24hrs.
this should be the main concern, if she is in pain then her appetite will decrease & then all the other pain related issues of more gut mobility & teeth problems will arise - always complicates things & is bad news.

when she's finished the antibiotics her weight will probably improve, i see you're giving her probiotics that's a help - it might not seem like it at the moment but if you weren't giving to her things would probably be worse. so i would keep it up for now.
i would definitely discuss with the vet to see if the pain relief is adequate though.

with the cataract if you try & keep the cage furniture in the same place then her diminished eyesight shouldn't be a problem.
6 years is a good age for a guinea so you have obviously been doing things right & been a devoted slave to her

hopefully she carries on as her happy feisty little self for at least a few months yet. Just enjoy the time you have left with her & spoil her rotten xx