Miss Bugaboo

I forget to update on Bugaboo. It's now been just over 2 years since she finished radiation treatments, and this spring she'll be 14 years old. We are "out of the woods" according to most statistics at this point. Most recurrances occur in less than 2 years. After that it seems like chances go down although that's antecdotal. Bugaboo is still my little cuddle bug. She is still playful, sweet, and very affectionate. She does seem a little thinner than before everything occured and she occasionally suffers from minor arthritis but she's earned it at her age. Her white patch hasn't really faded much over the years, but it's simply cosmetic.

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The Bugaboo Cancer Fund was set up to help offset the costs for Bugaboo's treatment in the effort to put her Fibrosarcoma in to full remission.

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I forget to update here, which is a really good thing! Bugaboo is still in full remission. Some of her white fur from radiation seems to be blending in to the rest of her fur a little bit but it may be that she's getting old enough to start showing a little grey. She's still active for a nearly 12 year old that went through all of this. It's 15 months since she finished radiation treatments.

Today is exactly one year since Bugaboo finished radiation. She's still in remission and doing great. Here is to another great year!

I almost forgot about Bugaboo's six month radiation anniversary. Things have returned to "normal" around here. Gui has grown quickly and is now just over 8 months old and living up to his feral birth. Bugaboo defends herself just fine and manages to give him kisses when he stops running around long enough. So far there have been no signs of reoccurance with Bugaboo, but I still check her out daily for any new lumps. She's still my loving fuzzy bean :)

Bugaboo at three months post radiation treatment and a close up of her radiation and incision area

Continue reading "Feb 20, 2005" »

Bugaboo had her 3 month check up today and the doctor said everything looked great. I need to keep checking her daily for reoccurance but other than that she doesn't need to come in for a year. Here is to hoping that she stays in remission for the next year at least!

Bugaboo's ACTUAL last day of radiation treatment. The staff at VTI gave her a little radiation graduation scarf

Continue reading "Nov 15, 2005" »

Bugaboo's not quite last day of radiation treatment

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Bugaboo had her initial radiation treatment at Veterinary Tumor Institute. She got shaved and marked up and will probably stay that way for the rest of the treatments. She was prescribed 17 radiation treatments, four a week (MTuThF). She'll be done with radiation 11/14.

Continue reading "Oct 19, 2005" »

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Bugaboo had a consultation appointment with Dr. Dearmin a surgeon specialist at PVSES which was to be followed immediately (same day) by radical ressection surgery including removal of bone and muscle, but upon physical examination the surgery would have to be much more severe than originally estimated. We are back to consider radiation treatment.

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Bugaboo has a consultation appointment with Dr. Fineman of Pacific Veterinary Specialists to discuss radiation treatment options.

Bugaboo had an appointment with Holistic Vet Dr. Skiwski of The Western Dragon to discuss nutritional and supplemental needs in conjunction with radiation treatments. Dr. Skiwski said she looks healthy and for starters will just migrate her to a better cat food, Innova Evo and start her on a daily dose of Thorne Research's Feline Geriatric Basic Nutrients. We will check point once she starts radiation and see how she handles it.

Continue reading "Sept 29, 2005" »

Second biopsy comes back clean. Dr. Boltz said there are no signs of neoplastic cells in the muscle tissue removed and the sub-tissue removed does show some reactive fibroblasts

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Bugaboo goes back in for a more agressive tissue and muscle removal surgery. Dr. Boltz takes muscle down to the "first plane". Tissue is sent in for biopsy. Referral is made to Dr. Fineman for radiation treatments. She came home a little more out of it but alert and her incision is a little longer and has more sutures now. She was prescribed more Buprenex 0.1ml 2-3 times a day for pain as needed and Baytril suspension .8ml one a day as an anitbiotic precautionary since she'd been opened twice in a week.

Continue reading "Sept 20, 2005" »

Got voicemail from Dr. Boltz saying Bugaboo's path report came back positive as fibrosarcoma. She says she has clean margins but they are <1 mm and she'd like to go back in and remove more tissue and potentially some muscle.

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Same day appointment scheduled for Bugaboo at Adobe Animal Hospital with Dr. Boltz. Dr. Boltz expresses concerns that this could be fibrosarcoma and offers to remove the mass and send it to biopsy that afternoon. Bugaboo has surgery, and comes home alert and fiesty with an approximate 2 inch incision between her shoulder blades. She was prescribed Buprenex 0.1ml twice a day for pain as needed.

Continue reading "Sept 14, 2005" »

Grape-sized lump noticed in Bugaboo's scruff area. Lump appears to be just under skin and seems "detached". You can grab around the thing and the cat is completely unphased.

Continue reading "Sept 13, 2005" »

FELINE INJECTION-SITE SARCOMAS
a.k.a. Vaccine Associated Sarcomas
a.k.a. Fibrosarcoma

What is an injection-site sarcoma?
An injection site sarcoma is a tumor of the connective tissues in the cat. The most common cell type affected is the fibroblast, giving the tumor the name fibrosarcoma. Other tumor types have been described (osteosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, malignant fibrous histiocytoma). The tumor types behave similarly and are therefore treated the same way. The tumors are often located between the shoulder blades, in the hip region, and in the back legs.
A cause and effect relationship has been established for certain vaccines, including rabies and feline leukemia. However, other chronic injections such as lufeneron (Program) have been thought to cause these tumors. It is likely there is a genetic predisposition to the development of these tumors in certain cats; however, the exact genetic problem has not yet been identified.

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