sjdavenport
Well-Known Member
I always find myself coming back here for the big events. Rhaegar has metastatic mast cell cancer. He had a low grade mast cell tumor completely removed on his chest in December 2020 with good margins. Then almost an entire year later, literally as we were introducing him to our brand new beauceron puppy, I was stroking him and felt a large, hard lymph node in his armpit near where the tumor was removed. Tears instantly sprang to my eyes. I knew in my heart exactly what it was. Tests confirmed it to be a metastatic lymph node from the tumor that has been gone for almost a year. It was removed surgically, and determined that he has the c-KIT mutation, which likely caused that "low grade" tumor to behave more aggressively.
Rhaegar is strong and brave, and I so hope to have years with him yet. We have declared WAR on this cancer. We just finished his eighth and last chemo treatment, and now will start him on Palladia, a targeted cancer therapy, long term if he tolerates it. Rhaegar doesn't know anything is wrong; I try not to let him know that I worry about him. He just knows that he goes for a car ride, gets a few needle sticks (which he is well accustomed to due to chronic issues) and gets fed steak and lamb sausages afterwards by the loving vet techs who say he's always been a perfect gentleman and a dream to work with. Then we would go to the petstore across the street from the oncologist for him to pick out a new toy every week with his chemo treatment. He has experienced zero side effects from the chemo, and we are living his best life together, and I hope to do so for a long time yet. His latest staging tests were clear for cancer spread.
Please pray for my boy. I need him here with me.
Rhaegar is strong and brave, and I so hope to have years with him yet. We have declared WAR on this cancer. We just finished his eighth and last chemo treatment, and now will start him on Palladia, a targeted cancer therapy, long term if he tolerates it. Rhaegar doesn't know anything is wrong; I try not to let him know that I worry about him. He just knows that he goes for a car ride, gets a few needle sticks (which he is well accustomed to due to chronic issues) and gets fed steak and lamb sausages afterwards by the loving vet techs who say he's always been a perfect gentleman and a dream to work with. Then we would go to the petstore across the street from the oncologist for him to pick out a new toy every week with his chemo treatment. He has experienced zero side effects from the chemo, and we are living his best life together, and I hope to do so for a long time yet. His latest staging tests were clear for cancer spread.
Please pray for my boy. I need him here with me.