An Update on Roxy

If  you missed the sad news about my dog Roxy, you can read about it here. Thank you to everyone for your nice comments and offer of prayers for me and Roxy. I took Roxy to see an oncologist on Friday to get a better idea of what was going on with her and to find out what my options were as far as treatment.

I feel really bad about the whole situation since I was listening to my primary vet and testing for other conditions that were all skin allergy related. I guess cancer is tricky like that and sometimes presents itself as an allergy related problem. I feel like I wasted a lot of precious time and thousands of dollars trying special diets and other tests related to allergies. Live and learn. Now I know better. If the problem does not clear up in a short period of time, head to a specialist. The dermatologist that diagnosed Roxy was very knowledgeable and had a pretty good idea of what was going on. She wasn't cheap but I felt like she was worth every penny that I spent because she gave me what I wanted, a diagnosis. It wasn't what I was hoping to hear but I am glad that I now know what is wrong with Roxy.

So on to the appointment with the oncologist. We took Roxy not really knowing what to expect but we knew it was not going to be cheap. The oncologist had already spoken to the dermatologist about the results of Roxy's biopsy and he really spent some time to talk to us about his recommendations and the treatment available to Roxy. I really like him and he was very thorough. He was knowledgeable and I felt like he honestly cared and wasn't just about the money.

The oncologist recommended that we do a complete blood panel to make sure that Roxy would be able to go through the treatment and that there were no other issues going on. Her blood work came back with no major issues so we decided to go with a less aggressive treatment. The aggressive treatment was just too expensive ($6,330) and I just could not justify spending that kind of money since there is no cure. We are hopeful that Roxy will go into remission and even if that happens she may only be in remission for 3-6 months before the cancer returns.

Roxy will be going through a 15-week course of oral chemo which is in the form of a pill. Every three weeks she will go to the oncologist, they will draw her blood and if everything looks good she will be given another dose. The treatment is still incredibly expensive ($410 per treatment) and if the 5 treatments do not put Roxy in remission then we will stop and give her the best quality of life for as long as it is humane to keep her with us on this earth. 

Roxy handled the first round of treatment pretty well. She did not have any major side effects such as vomiting, diarrhea or nausea. We are giving her anti-nausea just in case and I have medication on hand to deal with all of the other side effects should they ever be a problem. Roxy has a follow-up appointment this Friday which involves more blood work to see how her body is responding to the treatment.

This is a huge sacrifice for us. I just could not live with myself if I didn't try some kind of treatment. I know that there are lots of pet owners out there who cannot afford to or are not willing to do half of what I am willing and able to do for my fur babies so I have nothing to be guilty of should she not make it through the treatment.

In the meantime, I am hopeful yet fully aware of what Roxy is up against. We are spoiling her to death, giving her more love than we already have been for the past 13 years and she is really happy about her new high protein diet of boiled chicken breast. The other dogs are jealous and just don't understand why they can't have it to!

Please keep us in your prayers. Pray for healing and that Roxy's body is receptive to the treatment.