To the owner of Cutout (you Monty Python fan you!):
what other symptoms does she have besides the mass on her
neck?  Weight loss?  Lethargy?  Those are a couple of key
symptoms.  Our ferret Bandit has lymphosarcoma & has been
undergoing chemotherapy for 11 weeks.  We were recently
informed that he's in remission (yay!)  Lympho *is* treatable,
but you need a confirming diagnosis & a ferret specialist
ASAP.  Here's two you can try:
 
        Dr. Karen Rosenthal
        Animal Medical Center
        510 East 52nd Street
        New York, NY 10021
        (212) 838-8100
 
        Dr. K. Ann Jeglum
        725 E. Washington St.
        West Chester, PA 19380
        (215) 696-1585
 
[More on the ASAP - Lymphosarcoma can kill *very* fast.
Toby had no symptoms whatsoever, we just found him dead in
his cage one day (spleen had ruptured).]
 
Dr. Rosenthal confirmed Bandit's diagnosis & oversaw his
surgical treatment at AMC.  Dr. Jeglum is the oncologist
who has been overseeing Bandit's chemo.
 
I don't know how close they are to you, but they may be able
to refer you, if you're not close to them.  Other names that
have been recommended to me are Dr. Chris Newman at Hillsborough
Veterinary Hospital, near Princeton, NJ, 908-359-2000,
Dr. Liz Hillyer of Rutherford Animal Hospital, Rutherford, NJ
(sorry, don't have her phone number).  There's also Dr.
Thomas Kawasaki, who's in Connecticut -- Nancy Hartman can
probably get you his number.
 
Anyway, it's important that you get a confirming diagnosis
very soon -- can your vet do a blood workup?  A lympho
patient will have a skyhigh white blood cell count.
 
We were originally told that Bandit was too weak to survive
an operation but he did very well (he had a splenectomy &
biopsies of the liver, lymph nodes, kidney & intestines) --
his incision healed in 9 days!  Ferrets tolerate surgery &
chemo very well, from what Dr. Rosenthal & Dr. Jeglum have
both told us.  And you should be sure to get someone who
really knows what they are doing -- just ask Bill Gruber!
 
Good luck!!
 
On other subjects, Chris -- a couple of small corrections/
additions for the ferret FAQ.  Lenny Southam is actually the
person who uploads the FML to CompuServe.  And here's
how to send mail from Compuserve to the FML:
On the address line (To:) type:
        >INTERNET: [log in to unmask]
 
As for the person who asked about ferret/cat allergies:
I am allergic to cats but have no problem with ferrets.
I understand that this is not always the case, but thought
I'd add to the pool..
 
 
Oh, and John Rosloot -- congrats on the new addition to your
family!  Good luck with Buddy!
 
[Posted in FML issue 0264]