My cat has been diagnosed with lymphoma

[Peregrina]

This seems to have come on suddenly. She went for her injections/check up in November and seemed fine, apart from tartar on her teeth. She's suddenly gone off her food and lost a lot of weight.

There don't seem to be many options - chemo, which I am doubtful about or having her put to sleep, or I don't know if there is any sort of palliative care possible. DH and I disagree about this - he wants to try the chemo, I think it will just prolong her suffering. I don't think it's expected to be a cure.

I assume that others must have had to face something similar. What are your thoughts, or experiences?

Oh no. How old is she?
How was it diagnosed?

If the vet has suggested chemo I would discuss it with them. Depending on where the lymphoma is and how healthy she is otherwise it might be an option.

Chemo for cats doesn't have the side effects that humans get, and it can prolong their life happily.

My little one developed it but had a 3rd degree heart block and stage 2 kidney disease so couldn't have treatment, but if she had been in a better condition the vet would have done it.

My previous cat had intestinal lymphoma and had chemo. She had an extra two years before it came back and I had to have her pts. It was definitely worth it, my vet said it would be obvious very quickly if the chemo was working.

When Snorg was poorly last year, it was initially thought it was lymphoma due to a lump in her neck. The vet said that some cats tolerate chemo well. And others don't. I decided I would give her one round of chemo, but have a very low threshold for PTS if I thought she was suffering in any way. Fortunately it was lymphadenitis instead, so it didn't come to that.

It's in her kidneys. She's had one dose of chemo and is sleeping a lot, but even for a cat, this doesn't seem a very happy sort of life. So I am really not sure.

I should say, she's 8 and the vet did blood tests and some sort of biopsy.

If she is otherwise healthy and is eating, I would keep on with the chemo. You will know if she gets worse.

If she continually refuses food and drops a lot of weight quickly then you may need to reconsider. Being well enough to have chemo is a good place to start. Love her, cuddle her a lot and don't let her know how upset you are. Treasure the time you have with her.

Give her a fair chance or you will look back on it and wish you had tried for longer unless there are signs she is ready to go.

My girl wasn't ready and I wish I had waited one more day, just one day but I will always regret it.

We are going to take her to the vet again on Thursday. She's been sleeping all the time and not eating, so I suspect that it is time for her to go. She's gone down very quickly. Anyway, I will see what the vet says.
It's very sad, we got her from a rescue shelter, but at least I think we have been able to give her a happy life.

My cat had lymphoma and was put to sleep back in November. Very similar symptoms to yours that came on quite suddenly (I assumed it was an issue with her teeth) and we discovered she'd lost a lot of weight - had always been a chubster.

We decided not to go for chemo as:
a) she was 15
b) she hated taking medication and going to the vet

If she'd been younger and more compliant then I might have given it a trial as some cats really can get some decent quality extra time.

To be honest, she was so unhappy the final few days so when a steroid shot didn't perk her up I felt positive that it was truly the kindest thing to do and her passing was very peaceful.

I'm so sorry - it's a horrible shock and so hard to know what to do for the best x

Peregrina - sorry to hear about your cat. We had the same with one of ours, in the summer. She just suddenly stopped eating and was sleeping all the time, lost loads of weight very quickly, literally fading before our eyes. The Vet was not confident the treatment would work, the cancer was spreading really rapidly and she got upset at visiting the Vet (treatment would have meant about three visits a week). So we took the Vet's advice and had her put to sleep. She was also a rescue cat and I took comfort in the fact that she had a very happy and loving home in the 10 yrs she was with us.

Just take the advice of your Vet and also follow your instincts. If she is still eating and happily taking an interest in her surroundings, she may respond to treatment for a while. Otherwise, let her go. It is often the kindest thing. Hard decision, I know

Ah - crossed posts with Sleepyhead - sounds just exactly the same as our situation. Our little Bella was always trotting around the garden, like a tubby little pony. But in the last few weeks she was just so droopy and was losing weight so quickly, I couldn't bear to see it.

Having read your update I am inclined to agree that perhaps she has had enough, I am sorry.

Renal lymphoma comes on very quickly and sometimes chemo can work if it is discovered early, without it there is likely to be only about 6 weeks or so. They stop eating, and just waste away, it is very sad.

Evans and Sleepyhead - you describe my poor little cat exactly. My DH is the one who wants to try everything, but I hope that the vet manages to persuade him otherwise on Thursday. Until six weeks ago she was very active and still a good mouser, now she's just not the same cat at all.

My cat was recently diagnosed with lymphoma. She’s undergoing chemo and is doing ok in it. I was worried about putting her through it but I reckon the extra time it gives us are worth it. Cats typically respond very well to chemo, apparently.

But if your little one’s time has come, I’m sorry. Much love to you x

I have two experiences of cats with lymphoma which i just wanted to share.

My first cat to get it, had it in her neck. She had chemo and steroids, responded really well to them, and lived for another four years until the chemo stopped working. Sadly a month after she died another of my cats (not related) also got lymphoma.

My second cat to have lymphoma had a large tumour in her intestine. She had that removed. Knowing the process of chemo, and she was a nervous cat, i decided against chemo and she just had the steroids. She lived for another four months but the tumour came back.

The chemo doses are very low compared to humans apart from exceptionally slow hair regrowth, my cat had no other side effects. She was on steroids too. So i guess i only wanted to add that there are different types of chemo and that also it's worth getting your vets to seek advice from an cat oncologist for the best drug protocol in case they haven't. Also wanted to check your cat has been given steroids too?

Also you know your cat best. I knew one of my cats could cope with the vets and having the chemo, but i knew for the other cat that i would rather she had a happy last few months without the stress of the vets.

Thanks for your comments. We took her back to the vet, and even that was stressful for her, but she hadn't got the energy to run away and hide as she used to do. We all decided that the chemo wasn't working, but that one dose had been worth a try. She'd lost another 300 grams in a week. She had been spitting the steroid tablets out, so the vet gave her an injection instead. Sadly we think she only has about a week to live.

I'm so sorry things aren't looking more promising 😔

You'll know that you've done your best by her, whatever happens.