>From:    "Downey, Susan" <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: Adrenal Question
>I took Izzy into the vet this morning because I noticed the hair on her
>butt was thinning.  She had rat tail for most of the winter, never gained
>her winter coat, and was not gaining weight.  (she actually lost 2 oz since
>summer).  The hair on her tail has grown back but her rear is thinning.
 
The main thing is, symptoms point to an adrenal fuzzy.  She might be in the
early stages, based on duration of symptoms, but she might have a quickly
moving adrenal growth, based on rapid hair loss.
 
So, no answer there :(
 
Has your vet palpated the adrenals?  Can she or he feel anything?  Some
might advise an ultrasound, but growths can be small and invasive.  You
could get an estradial test, or the adrenal panel, at the U. Tennesse, but
that may not tell the whole story.  Surgery best gets to the point, in terms
of diagnosis (though symtoms can be present with adrenals appearing normal),
but if you do it in an early stage, you may end up doing it again in a
couple months, if nothing is found.  Even in late stages adrenal tissue may
appear normal.  Tissue may be elsewhere (the adrenal tissue is regenerative
and migratory, or can be), or the disease might be stemming from a problem
related to the pituary and/or hypothalamus!
 
The disease is an enigma, but I hope not forever!
 
>If it is looking like the symptoms are bigger then we will do the surgery
>around Wednesday.  But what if they are not?  Can we wait until the
>beginning of March to take care of this?  Is she going to get so much worse
>that she will not be strong enough to go through a surgery?  (she is
>skinny).  The vet said she was really boarder line.  That there was a lot
>of circumstantial evidence pointing toward adrenal, but things pointing the
>other way too.  Like her tail hair growing back.  <SNIP> What does it sound
>like to you.  Do the surgery now?  or wait a month when we get back?
 
Hair loss comes & goes with adrenal disease.  Once you've seen symptoms,
tho, don't get too excited about hair regrowth... sorry :(
 
Does your fuzzy have a swollen vulva?  If not, you probably have more time.
For the skinniness you could be hand feeding some kind of soft food (we use
a great turkey soup recipe) so she'll gain weight.  You can do this
two-three times per day.  Ours love it, and we give it to all the older
fuzzies.  It has ground egg shell for calcium & other good things, but is
mostly turkey for the little carnivore's needs.
 
My feeling is, that the longer you wait, the more chance you have of getting
into a malignant, or more difficult to treat, situation.  We don't have an
answer about the hows and whys of adrenal disease, but fuzzies with
malignant tumors can be beyond treatment.
 
BUT!, I have just heard something very intriguing from a South Florida
Ferret Club and Rescue member.  They have many adrenal fuzzies in and out of
their large ferret shelter.  One thing I'm sure of is that the seasons can
affect adrenal symptoms; hair loss may wax and wane, vulva swelling and
prostate enlargement may worsen and lessen, with the natural breeding season
of our fuzzies... they are light-activated seasonal breeders.  This doesn't
always happen, of course, but can.  I had two fuzzies beginning to lose hair
on the stomach during the same week!, in August of 1996.  Percy continued to
lose hair and, though receiving some treatment, passed away about 10 months
later; for one thing, exploratory surgery didn't yield abnormal adrenal
tissue to take out, and the vet, unfortunately, didn't prescribe Lysodren
(a chemo drug to kill off the errant adrenal tissue, and healthy tissue).
Wally grew all his hair back over the winter, though was a bit more
agressive than usual, until the following summer, when he rapidly began
losing hair.  He's on Lysodren with a full coat of hair and lots of energy
now, though a bit itchier than I'd like.
 
So... some Florida folk are leaning toward adrenal surgeries when the
symptoms would be waxing, from spring through summer, and feel that they're
coming across less fruitless adrenal exploratory surgeries this way!  I'm
excited about this idea.  Of course, there are situations where you wouldn't
want to wait, such as when a large tumor can be palpated, or the vulva has
been swollen for some time (female), or urinary tract problems have
developed (males).  The treatment may not be surgery, but some treatment
should be tried.
 
You could start her on Lysdren over the next month.  I use a shorter dosage
period than the usual one, which gives the fuzzy a chance to recover and get
rid of the dead tissue - lowering the chance of toxicity.  but since it's
only a month, you might just wait.  For me, it would depend on a number of
factors... which is why a ver very experienced in adrenal disease is
invaluable!  The ones who are, are, thankfully, willing to consult.
 
>Will some one also please give me info on the adrenal mailing list.  I think
>it is time to join that.
 
Just send a message to me at <[log in to unmask]>, and I'll subscribe
you.  The list has been very busy lately - *pant, pant* - but is going well.
Pam Greene just updated the ferret disease FAQs, and the adrenal FAQ has
some new info, some from our list, FAIML.  I'm glad to see the FAQ getting
updated.  Hopefully, with help from list members, we can provide the next
Adrenal and Insulinoma FAQs with a glossary of terms, and some concise info,
based on fuzzy parent's stories on the different treatments, perhaps some
typical case studies.  There's a lot to be done, especially for insulinoma,
where there is no chemical available to kill off the tumors, like there is
for adrenal disease.  Anyway, this is getting REALLY long!
 
I wish Izzy the best!  And you, too.
Lynn Mc.
 
>Sue and her frenzy of five thinking good thoughts for Izzy
[Posted in FML issue 2202]