Lucy Has Cancer, Part 3

Lucy has had two additional visits to her vet, Loving Touch Animal Center, since my last post. The first visit was for the flushing of her 2 drains along with a set of antibiotics and probiotics; the second, for removal of her drains. She is doing remarkably well, especially still having to wear a t-shirt 24/7.

Lucy’s lab results came back with an interpretation of “Spindle Cell Neoplasia, Grade 1 Hemangiopericytoma”. We are very thankful it was the lowest grade.

Upon having her 30 staples removed, we will have her lungs x-rays. This is the most likely place for metastasis of this type of cancer. Hopefully, these x-rays will only ever serve as a base-line set.

If Lucy’s lungs come up clean, she will undergo surgery for the other 2 small masses on her body. She has one on the other side of her trunk and another under her leg which, in time, will interfere with her walking. (The veterinary surgeon was unable to remove them during the first surgery. She would have been under anesthesia too long.)

I researched “hemangiopericytoma” on-line and located this info:

• 'Grossly, hemangiopericytomas can be soft, firm, or rubbery and are frequently mistaken for lipomas. They also may be nodular and locally invasive. Hemangiopericytomas occur most frequently on the extremities, but may arise on the trunk.'

Lucy’s hemangiopericytoma was diagnosed for a lipoma at first.  It was located on the trunk of her body. From this experience, we learned the surest way to tell what’s growing is through a biopsy. Let me say it again: If you feel a lump on your pooch, get a biopsy ASAP!

Lucy and her "babies".

If you missed any of the previous posts in this series, here are the links to them:

• Part 1
• Part 2