Hi All:

I've posted this in a few places, including hte FHL, but thought I'd
also post it here, in case there's anyone out there who knows
something.

My Max (7 or 8 yrs old - a rescue from Ferrets Unlimited in Cleveland
several yrs ago) has 2 medical problems. The first is insulinoma. We're
keeping it fairly well under control w/ pred, & that's not the major
problem.

Back in late Oct, however, I discovered what looked to be an abscess on
the upper right side of his gumline. I figured it was a tooth problem,
& took him to my vet. A couple xrays were done, & there it was - not a
tooth abscess, per se, but bone cancer, in his right zygomatic arch,
below the right eye. This was causing the bad spot on his gumline, &
since it appeared infected, we started him on Clavamox. We're currently
giving him 0.30cc 2X/day, pulsing it 4 days on, & 3 days off, not just
for the area in his mouth, but also to prevent *any* secondary
infection that may arise from the cancer being present. To fight any
discomfort in his mouth, I'm putting dental grade topical lidocaine on
the area a couple times a day. It seems to help some.

The cancer has been growing, slowly but steadily. He has a small-ish
swollen area on the right side of his face below his eye, & the lump
in his mouth has grown - it's surrounding the one tooth, & has in fact
displaced it slightly, so that the tooth now angles inward on a
diagonal.

Despite all this, Max is eating like a trooper (soup made from
pulverized Natural Gold, water, & a touch of 'Tone for taste),
drinking, peeing, & pooping, all normally. He uses the litterbox
faithfully, as he always has done. He does have some hind end weakness
from the insulinoma - he has trouble navigating on hard surfaces, but
he does just fine on carpet.

Here's the dilemma: Were Max obviously not doing well, I would have no
hesitation to help him on his way to the Bridge. However, Max is still
full of life, & you can see it in his eyes & his behavior. Although he
does sleep more than he used to, he is still eagar to get out of the
cage for playtime, explore the house outside the ferret room (w/ close
supervision, of course), & interact w/ our other 3 ferrets - even if
he's curled up sleeping, if one of the other ferrets goes near him,
he'll get up, greet them, & follow them around to see what they're
up to. He also plays gently at times, kicking his stuffed ferret toy
around (it's bigger than he is), or wrestling w/ our hands when we
flip him over on his bac & tickle him.

I know Max's remaining time w/ us will be short, although our vet says
there's no way to predict *how* short. He's going on 4 mos w/ this as
it is, & is still the same, functionally-speaking, as he was when it
all started. And I know that we're covering our bases, as far as meds
are concerned.

My question is this - does anyone know of any other treatments that are
being done, conventionally or experimentally, for this sort of problem?
A major part of the problem is it's location - the upper jaw, not the
lower one. Again, if he wasn't so obviously willing to be active &
interested in his surroundings, I wouldn't bother. But my vet & I still
believe he has some quality of life left in him, & all I want is to do
whatever is available for him, to keep him comfortable & happy for as
long as he has left w/ us (at the minimum), & hopefully prolong his
time w/ us, if possible.

If anyone has any experience w/ this, knows of someone who does, or
even knows a vet who is doing other sorts of treatment for this, could
you please let me know ASAP? Either here on the list, or via private
email - either is fine.

For having started his life so horribly neglected, Maxie Boy is the
sweetest boy you can imagine; & until this hit him, he was the most
energetic & playful little guy. I seriously believe he has some of that
left in him, if only the cancer wasn't slowing him down as it is. I
don't think we're being selfish, just wanting to keep him w/ us. I
truly believe, as does our vet, that he still has a good quality of
life under the circumstances. I simply want him to have the *best*
time he has left w/ us, as is possible.

Thanks for reading this, & again, if anyone knows of anything else
that might be done for Max, please, please, let me know, so I can
check it out.

Lin, Max, Puck, Ivan, & Mason
~ Missing my angel Ariel - 20 April 2000 - 20 January 2007. Wait for
me, my Baby Girl. I miss you so much. ~
~ Missing my Oberon - 4 July 2001 - 5 May 2008 - I love you, my Big
Silly Boy. Wait for me. ~
~ Missing my Madison - ? - 9 September 2008 - Our time was too short,
but my love is forever. ~
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
email me at: kay tee en eye el at double-u owe aich dot ar ar dot
see owe em
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

[Posted in FML 6258]