Topic: Middle Ear Mass: R.I.P. Little Thea (Read 7450 times)

Dahlia · « **Reply #34 on:** January 06, 2011, 23:39:33 PM »

Thank you again. It'll take time, but I have lots of wonderful memories.

puggy1975 Zoe · « **Reply #33 on:** January 06, 2011, 19:32:59 PM »

madamcat (Edd) · « **Reply #32 on:** January 05, 2011, 20:57:13 PM »

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #31 on:** January 05, 2011, 20:37:29 PM »

It will take time

Dahlia · « **Reply #30 on:** January 05, 2011, 19:59:52 PM »

Thank you all again. Today was ok in terms that I was very busy with work until about half an hour ago, so I was distracted. Now I feel horrid again and miss her awfully. I keep thinking I can hear her :-(

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #29 on:** January 04, 2011, 19:55:42 PM »

Like Mark said , it doesnt matter how long you have been on Purrs cos the loss of your very best friend is devasting. I hope you stay with us because we all understand how you are feeling

cazzer · « **Reply #28 on:** January 04, 2011, 19:28:55 PM »

sorry to hear about poor Thea :hug:x

Dawn F · « **Reply #27 on:** January 04, 2011, 18:27:15 PM »

I am so sorry to read this, I really hoped she would get better

JackSpratt · « **Reply #26 on:** January 04, 2011, 18:25:01 PM »

I'm so sorry for your loss. Thea sounded a sweet girl and I also feel that my animals are family members. Hope you're coping.

Dahlia · « **Reply #25 on:** January 04, 2011, 18:10:46 PM »

Thank you Mark. I feel that way - I live on my own and my girl has always been there with me (well for 8 years). She was a member of my family. I used to drive home from work everyday, excited because I looking forward to seeing her.

Mark · « **Reply #24 on:** January 04, 2011, 17:48:46 PM »

It doesn't matter how long you have been on the forum - most of us have been in your situation (I have twice in the last year) and know exactly how you feel. Our cats are companions and family. I know some people, myself included feel the loss of animals as much as losing human family members.

Dahlia · « **Reply #23 on:** January 04, 2011, 17:14:26 PM »

Thank you all so much, esp. as I have only been on the forum a week or so. It's so kind of you.

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #22 on:** January 04, 2011, 15:48:54 PM »

I am so very sorry to hear this sad news

RIP Thea play hard on the Bridge, you have left a Purr in your slaves heart

madamcat (Edd) · « **Reply #21 on:** January 04, 2011, 15:29:55 PM »

So sorry to hear this.

RIP little Thea - run free little one

Jasmine · « **Reply #20 on:** January 04, 2011, 15:03:30 PM »

So sorry you have lost your little loved one

.
Take care

God Bless Thea
XX

Mark · « **Reply #19 on:** January 04, 2011, 15:00:50 PM »

So sorry to hear about Thea. I know that nothing anyone can say will comfort you but you did the right thing for her when she needed it

Dahlia · « **Reply #18 on:** January 04, 2011, 14:57:54 PM »

Hello all

Thank you for all your replies. Unfortunately Thea went downhill drastically at the weekend, and could barely stand. When she did stand, she fell over. I stayed up with her, spoon feeding her, but I don't think she really knew what was going on. My cuddles didn't comfort her, and usually she is reassured by my presence.

So, after talking with the vet, I let her go this morning. She was barely able to move once she got to the vets, and drifted into a deep sleep. I'm going to miss her so much - I'm just so lucky I got to spend 8 years with her, she was an amazing, sweet-natured, beautiful girl who just wanted to spend all her time cuddling up to me.

Thanks again

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #17 on:** January 02, 2011, 16:43:18 PM »

I think a try at a steroid injection would be a good idea if it only lasts 3 days as someone has said.

An operation will be very traumatic and in her current state I think a surgeon may be reluctant to undertake this, she has to be able to cope with the anesthetic and the post operative state and any pain from the op.

One of the problems with her current state is also the effect on the brain which learns to cope with the balance problem but could take a long time to relearn if she rebalances......I have a balance problem!

If they are gonna do the op, its probably quite important to do it very soon now..............but afraid only the specialist can answer the questions you have.....can you get your vet to ring him?

Dahlia · « **Reply #16 on:** January 02, 2011, 14:11:13 PM »

Hello, it's me again - looking for your thoughts....

Thea has been on steroid tablets for 4 days now - unfortunately tilting her head back to get them in makes her dizzy and bitey/scratchy (so I wrap her up in a blanket to put them in her mouth). I keep finding spat out tablets a few hours later. Putting them on her food isn't really an option, as because her balance is so bad she is pretty much laying down and licking at her food until she gets a piece in her mouth.

All in all, I would say her balance is getting a little worse day by day. She can still walk, but with a head tilt, swaying and wobbling, and if she wants to walk say 10 foot, she will fall over 2-3 times on the journey.

Really I wanted people's thoughts on her having the op to remove the middle ear mass. I don't really understand why we haven't just done the op, rather than waiting to see if she gets better - esp. if it is the actual mass that is causing these problems in the first place. The hospital specialist talked about not putting her through it (I think maybe he meant it might be kinder), as we don't know for sure what the outcome might be. I have never had a pet who needed surgery, I have no idea how traumatic it is - but she's certainly not having a good time of it right now. I guess I just worry that if I take her to the vets this week and they say it is time to let her go, will I have done everything I possibly can to help her, if she doesn't have the surgery?

I want to do my best for her. I'm pretty much housebound right now, keeping an eye on her, I'm not really eating as I'm so worried, and it's all I can think about.

Thanks

Desley (booktigger) · « **Reply #15 on:** December 31, 2010, 12:46:10 PM »

What a shame the vets dont know enough to help you decide what to do. Re the steroids, they can be put in her food, Molly takes her half tablet mixed in with her food, and thyroid meds can be hidden in things like Primula and meat, so you dont have to put them in her mouth, if that makes her feel worse. Molly had a steroid jab initially, it lasted 3 days, then she was put on tablets, and they also do longer acting ones.

Dahlia · « **Reply #14 on:** December 30, 2010, 23:07:25 PM »

Thank you so much everyone. She is asleep in her igloo at the moment. She's had some food (and even attempted to climb up the kitchen cabinet while I emptied it into her bowl!) and I took her outside to go to the toilet (she won't use the litter tray - she's very fastidious. In fact the vet found her asleep in it when she stayed there overnight!). Just the thyroid med and eye drop to get through, then hopefully she will snooze comfortably all night.

Thanks again for the thoughts, it's very much appreciated.

alisonandarchie · « **Reply #13 on:** December 30, 2010, 22:45:11 PM »

Thinking about you both

Dawn F · « **Reply #12 on:** December 30, 2010, 19:57:56 PM »

good luck for your chat with the vet!

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #11 on:** December 30, 2010, 18:49:54 PM »

Sorry I think only a vet can advise on this cos it depends on the working life of the steroid, if given by injection, but sure the op could be scheduled a bit later............couldnt it?

I feel so sorry for you going through this with your best friend aqnd sooooooooooo understand the stress and pain it causes.........I would get advice on this asap tomorrow if you can.

You are not hoggin the forum, post as much as you like, sometimes it helps to bang heads with others

Dahlia · « **Reply #10 on:** December 30, 2010, 18:44:01 PM »

Also - and I'm sorry to post again and hog the forum - do you think a steroid injection might be better than 2x daily tablets? She's the gentlest cat you could imagine and lets me put the tablets in her mouth, but since moving her head makes her fall over, she is very reluctant. They have given the tablets in case she makes a marked improvement, and if so, then we will stop them on Saturday ready for an op on Tuesday. However the hospital specialist did say if she was getting better with steroids I could carry them on for a few more days, get her on better form, then have the op.

I have to speak to my vet tomorrow to give her an update, she's had one steroid so far and is no better. But then it's never been a miraculous transformation after half a day in the past!

Thanks

Dahlia · « **Reply #9 on:** December 30, 2010, 18:30:44 PM »

Thanks so much Gill. I've read lot of stories on the net (and now yours), where cats had frightening symptoms, but something was tried e.g. a Ab or an op, and beyond the odds the cat got better. (One lady insisted on an op for her cat's brain tumour, despite being told it wasn't worth it, and he was still with her 6 years after the op). Which makes me think should I push for an op regardless? I want to give her the best chance possible, but I don't want to make it worse or more painful for her. The Internal Medicine specialist has been more pessimistic all along - the surgeon I spoke to last week was more optimistic (but then she hadn't got this bad then). Maybe I should ask for his opinion too - but I have no idea which one is the more knowledgeable in this issue.

She can barely walk now - well she can, but not straight and she just keeps falling - and I'm just in tears. I don't think I could get a cat again, I love my girl so much and I can't bear this. Sorry.

Thanks again.

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #8 on:** December 30, 2010, 17:59:23 PM »

The decison to PTS is yours not theirs and if you want more time you just tell them.

I suspect and this is a pure guess, that the mass has been their since the beginning and each time the steroids have reduced it enough so as to allow her to get better again and if your vet had done a CT scan at the begiining it would have been found.

I have a cat who has been having seizures but was too old to travel a long way for a MRI scan, he was treated as if he had a brain infection with a very powerful ab and it worked and after a year they stopped for about 10 months and then started again. With him it was all guess work but 2 yrs on and now recovered from seizures in Nov, a vet has finally come up with what sounds like sensible theory that he has an abcess on the front of his brain caused by an infection and when it grows it puts pressure on the brain and causes seizures. Now that so much time has passed since they started cancer can be ruled out and also an ear problem becasue with the first he would not still be with me and with the sewcond he would by now have a head tilt.

If the specialist is any good at your end he should be able to make an educated guess but only an op would show the nature of the beast and at that point may decide that PTS is the best option. If you go down the op route at a later date you need to ensure that before anything drastic is done during the op, someone rings you to explain and pts is only with your agreement.

I know how stressful all this must be but give Thea all your love everyday so you never look back and say I wish I had done this or that

Dahlia · « **Reply #7 on:** December 30, 2010, 14:35:01 PM »

Thanks Gill, Desley and Dawn. The problem is, because they have no idea what the mass is, they have no idea if the op will help or not. They also don't know why she's had the sudden worsening - could be the mass is aggressive, could be it's an inflammatory lesion (as originally thought) that has got more inflamed from where they were poking it trying to get a biopsy. So their advice is: if the steroids help her or she stabilises, then go for the op; if not then don't, as they don't think she should be put through the pain.

I guess another issue I have is that she has had vestibular disease before, and got better after about 6 weeks. Obviously we know there is a mass now, but it could have been there back then too and caused the vestibular symptoms (according to the hospital vet). They are talking about euthanasia if she doesn't improve pretty quickly with the steroids. Bearing in mind this vestibular history, I worry they might not give her a long enough chance to get better.

Well she's had her first steroid...all I can do is wait and see.

Thanks again.

Desley (booktigger) · « **Reply #6 on:** December 30, 2010, 13:40:30 PM »

I would ask the hospital vet what the chances of the op being successful are, as if there isn't a good chance, it might not be fair on her to put her through the pain of an op for nothing.

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #5 on:** December 29, 2010, 20:59:27 PM »

Such a terrible worry and know how you must feel........I do hope the steroids help and the op goes well if it happens. Sending all my very best wishes to Thea and you

Dahlia · « **Reply #4 on:** December 29, 2010, 19:48:32 PM »

Hi - yes 'hospital vet' is the specialist, 'vet' is her usual vet

We got the specialist reports from the CAT scan 2 weeks ago, saying there is a mass in the middle ear, and the specialist is veering on the side of it being an inflammatory lesion, given her previous vestibular episodes. They wanted to wait for the biopsy results before doing surgery (even though they were 90% certain it would be inconclusive). And indeed it was inconclusive, as they couldn't get close enough to the mass to get a biopsy - which means we waited a full two weeks for that result, when she could have had surgery in the meantime.

So since then, in the past 4 days, she has gone downhill drastically, and now cannot walk straight and keeps falling over (just like when she had vestibular disease 6 years ago). Steroids worked for her when she had it before, but then she never had the sneezing fits and eye problems then. The hospital vet thinks this could indicate a more aggressive tumour. So the plan is to try her on steroids for a few days, see if she progresses. If so, then surgery.

I already know what the hospital vet thinks - steroids might keep her going for a very short while, and he doesn't want her put through surgery if she doesn't improve from them, as it may make no difference. My vet is being led by him, basically.

It's awful watching her stumbling about, she's hit her head 3 times already. She's definitely gone blind in the left eye; possibly the right (although I'm not convinced), and apparently has probably been deaf in her left ear for quite some time. So right now it must be incredibly scary for her.

Thanks again.

Gill (sneakiefeline) · « **Reply #3 on:** December 29, 2010, 18:09:42 PM »

Sorry no experience of this either , have the specialist reports arrived now............emails and faxes should have been used cos usually only paper reports.

Is hospital vet the specialist?

Your own vet does not sound very proactive but you need a specialist opinion on the percentages for each option so that you can decide what is best for dear Thea.

I would also ask your vet what he would do if it was his cat. Push him for an answer!

I do hope Thea can be helped

Dawn F · « **Reply #2 on:** December 29, 2010, 16:53:18 PM »

sorry I have no experience of this but hope somebody may have some advice for you

Dahlia · « **Reply #1 on:** December 29, 2010, 15:20:43 PM »

Hi everyone, I am new here, and my cat Thea is terribly ill. I guess I'm hoping someone might have experience with a similar illness.

To give a bit of background: Thea was a rescue cat, and her left side of face has always been 'paralysed'. She is now 12-13 ish, and hyperthyroid for the past year. She has also had intermittent mild resurgence of what the vet assumed was cat flu.

6 years ago, she collapsed with vestibular disease - vet said the cause was unknown (but did no CT scan). Steroids helped her out, 6 weeks later she was back to normal. She had a slight relapse about 4 years ago, steroids helped again.

6 weeks ago, she started having sneezing fits, this then led to an ulcerated left eye (the one she can't close), and conjunctivitis. Antibiotics and steroids did nothing. We were referred to a specialist hospital 2 weeks ago who did a CT scan, expecting to find a sinus cavity tumour. No tumour - but they found a mass in her left middle ear (ie the paralysed side). They said it could be malignant, but bearing in mind her vestibular disease history, was more likely to be inflammatory lesion, which could be removed and then steroids should make her pretty much back to normal. They took a biopsy and we were waiting for the results, with the op scheduled for last week.

Anyway - the results didn't turn up due to snow, so the op got postponed, and in the past week she started showing vestibular signs. Everytime she had a sneezing fit, she fell over. (She also can't see out of the ulcerated eye now). I took her to the vet on Monday - she has been there since. The hospital vet called today and said as she has got so bad, we have two options: either try steroids and see if that helps her balance, and see how long she goes on for (i.e. probably not long). Or, try steroids and if she stabilises, then have the op next week. Frankly, he didn't sound very optimistic, and we could be looking at putting her to sleep.

(btw She is eating normally, and has no temperature or diarrhoea.)

To say I am devastated is an understatement. I live alone and she has been my best friend for 8 years - I love her to bits. Has anyone experienced this? Should I ask for surgery anyway, in case it works? I just want to do everything I possibly can for her. I just want my little girl back

Thanks.

Author Topic: Middle Ear Mass: R.I.P. Little Thea (Read 7450 times)