Hi there. I would like a VET to answer if possible.I posted other messages (I have to read how to pay). Here it goes. My dog (doberman two years old) was chronically vomiting no diahrea. He went in for tests.I recieved the biopsy report in the mail: It states that their are rugal folds very prominent in stomach, small intestine markedly friable and irregular...biopsy (word for word) stomach- Atypical lymphoid infiltrate suggests small cell lymphoma...Duodenum- Modertate to severe lymphoplasmacytic enteritis...some lymphangiectasia noted.....Diagnosis: Severe lylmphocytic gastroenteritis-Questionable for early lymphoma...
OK Now here are the meds they prescribed:
1.Prednisone 20 mg two tablets by mouth twice daily for 10 days then one tab once a day (until next appointment...one month)
2. Chlorambucil/Leukeran 2mg (two tablets once daily)

The vet gave me some info on inflammatory bowel disease (Keep in mind they are leaning more towards early cancer but basically he still has the inflammation..but we don't know for sure if he does or does not have cancer(lymphoma) so here is what it states word for word regarding IBD:

"Is it at all reasonable to just try treatment and skip the expensive diagnosis?

ANSWER: Possibly. The problem with the prednisone trial involves the possibility of intestinal lymphosarcoma (also called lymphoma). This is a type of cancer that produces chronic diarrhea or vomiting just as IBD can. Lymphoma is temporarily responsive to prednisone but the response is short-lived. Exposure to prednisone will make the lymphona much more difficult to diagnose should biopsies be obtained later. Plus exposure to prednisone can lead to resistance to other medications. This is less of a problem for cats, but in dogs even a few days of prednisone can make a lasting remission impossible to achieve" (end of word for word)

Now if you read my other posts...we do NOT know if he does indeed 100% have lymphoma...but according to this if he did have it it could do more harm (not to mention I want to in the future get another biopsy and this says it can mess with the results!) and not to mention if I read it correctly the first line or so it says it can actually CAUSE lymphoma! So I am NOT going to give this to my dog. However it is Sat and I have to wait until Monday to call my reg. vet. What other medicine can he take? Is the other medicine safe? What if he doesn't have cancer?
One last question. I did some research on herbal med/alternative and I found that K-9 Immunity , Nzymes, and Curcumin can actually help. Do you (or anyone) know anything about these herbs or any other herbs/alternative methods (reiki? open to anything) that can heal my dog?
Also if he may be at the beginning stages, can't anything be done such as radiation/surgery? This pill (Leukeran 2mg) I believe is a form of chemotherapy could this help destroy any cancer cells? When I had asked the intern she said there was no cure....there is with human stomach cancer so....so basically what I am asking is:
1. Can a vet put into English terms what the biopsy results/diagnosis say....
2. Agree or Disagree that Prednisone 20mg 2X daily is BAD since my dog MAY or may NOT have lymphoma I mean didn't it say it could actually even cause it and if he did have it it could make it worst?? Also since we don't know for sure if he does have cancer he definitely should not take this right? WHAT OTHER MEDICINE COULD HE TAKE?
Is the Leukeran 2mg ok for him to take? Could that actually kill the cancer cells if there are any? or if they are caused from having gastritis too long?
3. The herbs listed (K-9 Immunity, Nzymes, and Curcumin) if anybody knows anything about them. Curcumin is for humans and am leaning towards getting the other two but are they safe? or if anybody knows about any other herbs/alternative treament?
4. Why won't (or will it) radiation/chemothereapy work to cure the cancer? I mean what kind of treatment can I do? Is there a bloodtest for diagnosis? How much would it cost to have exploratory surgery with a bigger biopsy?
5. What health insurance can I get and do they have pre-existing conditions...like in human insurance (we all know how insurance can be!) Ok thanks.I am in Richmond, VA. My email is: dobetranr@aol.com or purcatz@comcast.net I am open to all emails! I don't know what to do or think. Please read other posts. This has been some two weeks. ALmost 2K gone already and he is either going to be 100% fine or have cancer 100%...

Edited by Customer (name blocked for privacy) on August 20 2005 at 6:22 PM