I just had a second set of x-rays done on Bhut, 8 month old male (one of
the new kids I adopted in August) today that showed an enlarged thymus,
mild congestion in the lungs, the heart is slightly out of position (like
it is being pushed down and to the side), and he has an enlarged lymph node
in the abdomen (none of these were present on films taken at the end of
Sept, although there was pleural effusion).  He has no other enlarged lymph
nodes present at this time.  He had a CBC/Chem Panel done last week that
showed all normal values except for the lymphocyte % was 53.1 (normal is
0-4).  There were a few other odd numbers on the Chem panel, but I was told
today that those aren't significant at this point.
 
Anyway, although we don't have a definitive diagnosis, the vet seemed to
be pretty sure that this is most likely thymic dependent lymphoma (???).
I have never heard of this particular name for it........is this the same
as juvenile lymphoma or similar to it?  I think it probably is, since the
thymus is affected and there is no sign of lymph node enlargement other
than the abdominal one.  That leads to my next concern about treatment
options.  For now, we are just using pred 0.50mg/kg once daily.  I know I
can't even consider chemo without first doing a biopsy, but the vet didn't
seem to want a biopsy for confirmation at this time.  When I asked about
chemo, I was told that the pred would be best and will keep him alive at
least for a while.......but what does that mean for long term chances???
 
Also, I was wondering what kind of precautions I need to take with him if
any.  Will it suppress the immune system enough to make him more
susceptible to infections or colds?  Any special diets or supplements that
I should start him on?  I did find something today about giving Vitamin C
50-100mg/kg orally every 12 hours, but other than this, I haven't found
much else.
 
Sorry for the 20 questions, but I know that many of you have dealt with
this before or are dealing with it now so I am hoping someone can help
answer some of them.  I just don't know where to go from here.
 
Thanks in advance for any help,
Stacia and the fuzzies
[Posted in FML issue 2471]