>I had hoped someone more knowledgeable than I would have responded >to your first post, but haven't seen anything thus far... so here it Yep, I bet that happens a lot. I had the same thought. >It [Lupron] retards the growth of adrenal tumors. Lupron *may* retard the growth of adrenal tumors in certain cases, but that's not its primary use. It will not shrink or eliminate tumors, which is why surgery is still recommended. Lupron's primary action is to slow the hormone production that the over-active adrenal glands cause. Diseased adrenal glands release massive amounts of sex hormones into the body, and those are what causes the hair loss, swollen prostates in males, false estrus in females, etc. Lupron doesn't affect the adrenal glands directly, but does short-circuit the signals that tell the adrenal glands to produce. >Prednisone is an anti-inflammatory steroidal medication, and in >ferrets is used primarily for insulinoma in ferts. It does nothing Yup. Insulinoma is only one of the many things prednisone is used for though. It's often very useful for many types of inflammatory disease and other kinds of tumors, including lymphoma. It's even useful as a replacement for natural steriods AFTER complete adrenal removal. Prednisone is good stuff - but it has a nasty tendency to cripple the body if used long term. Ferrets are much more tolerant of it than most species though, so it's a very useful drug with them. The short answer is - prednisone will do nothing for adrenal disease. Your options are Lupron or surgery. (Or both. A ferret that is receiving Lupron can still have the surgery done, but Lupron should not normally be needed after the surgery.) >... The predinsone is not a 'cure'.... it assists the body in regulating >the insulin. Hopefully someone with a far better Correct, it's not a cure. Like Lupron and the adrenals, prednisone doesn't affect the tumors directly. In this case prednisone helps by raising the blood sugar level, which helps to counteract the excess insulin produced by the diseased pancreas. >knowledge base than I will respond to this, and help Mary and little >Tweaky understand the different actions. I also wonder why her Vet >has not taken the time to talk with her?? Some are reluctant to "talk technical" with clients because their clients may not understand or may interpret things incorrectly. Some are just so used to explaining things in lay terms that they don't even think of explaining the details. I don't know if the original poster even asked though. That's always the first step - if you have questions, ask your vet! Don't expect them to explain everything in detail if you don't ask. If they are reluctant to answer even when asked directly, find another vet. (Note that I am talking specifically about asking for clarification. Asking for an on-the-spot diagnosis is another matter entirely - that one can't always be answered.) Mike Janke compiles a lot of very good info on ferret health issues, including adrenal disease and insulinoma, at his website. You can visit it here: http://miamiferret.org/fhc/ roger [Posted in FML issue 4673]