Tues., June 7, 2011 - Savoring another big chunk!!!

Yesterday, was intravenous chemotherapy again for Hardee in Carlsbad, CA.  I was nervous about going for Hardee's appointment because I needed to talk to Hardee's oncologist about a problem that I was seeing with Hardee, and I was terrified that the tumor was growing further down into Hardee's hard palate.  The problem I was seeing was that Hardee was no longer that interested in chewing his bully sticks in the afternoon.  When I would give them to him, he would drop them.  Then what would usually take 20 minutes for him to chew, would end up taking 3 hours.

After explaining the problem to Dr P, he agreed that we should CT scan again.  Hardee's last scan was Jan. 20th of this year.  Because I had fed Hardee breakfast and he needs an empty stomach for anesthesia, I asked if we should do the scan when we come again for chemo in 3 weeks.  Dr P said "No" in case it was an infected tooth, an abscess, or something else that might need treatment right away.  They took Hardee's blood, and then off we went to find something to do for a couple hours waiting for Hardee to digest.

We drove up and down the coast for awhile looking for a beach that allowed dogs.  We finally found one, and we took a walk.  We couldn't let Hardee swim because we couldn't get water in Hardee's nose.  When they CT scan, it is hard to tell fluid from tumor, so we busied ourselves with videos of Hardee instead.  Flocks of pelicans kept flying directly over us, and I took that as a good sign.  Eventually we headed back to the hospital.

Hardee was in the back of the hospital for almost 7 hours while Jim and I worried out front.  A dog with an emergency came in and took priority in the CT.  While Hardee waited, he chewed out 2 I.V.s.  They tried 5 times for the 3 I.V.s they got.  Hardee had had enough by then, and he warned his technician with an air bite.  They finally gave him a sedative to help knock him down before anesthesia.  They waited until after the CT scan and chest radiographs were done and the results were in before they gave him his chemo.  They have a radiologist there who interpreted the scans and radiographs.

The results were no spread of cancer into his lungs, and the best part, no growth of the tumor since our last scan on Jan. 20th.  We were thrilled!  No sign of any tooth infections nor any abscesses, so we don't know why Hardee's mouth seemed sore.  Dr P searched around inside Hardee's mouth while he was knocked out and didn't see anything, so for now we won't worry.  Dr P reminded us that it is just a matter of time before the tumor starts to grow again, but for now we will continue on with the same plan of action. 

I saw the scans, and HH doesn't have much of a septum (the bone and cartilage that divides the nasal passage into the right and left sides) left.  The tumor has eaten most of it, but it really doesn't matter.  Also, HH got a nose bleed while in the back with them.  They say his blood pressure went up while in the back of the hospital, which is why they gave him the sedative, and it set off the bleed.  My nose, without a tumor, might bleed after 5 I.V. attempts.  Anyway, his bloody nose got all over us when they brought him out, and it continues to bleed today but is finally slowing down.  It is just bleeding out of the right side which is where the tumor originated.

They didn't release Hardee to us until 7 p.m., so it was a very late start for our long drive home to Vegas.  HH couldn't stay awake, but he had the sedative and anesthesia on board.  He was doing his drunk walk, and we had to help support him because he would fall over.  While in the waiting room getting our discharge instructions, Hardee climbed into his Daddy's lap and snuggled.  Jim ate it up because Hardee is not normally a snuggle dog.  We finally made it back to Vegas around 12:30 a.m.

Today, we are still rejoicing.  We have kicked this tumor's ass for another 4.5 months.  We will not be able to fight it off forever, but we will fight like hell as long as we can.  It has been about 10 months since we started this battle.  Sometimes we get tired, but we stay the fight.  Hardee does amazing things that renews our optimism frequently.  We keep going for him, and selfishly for us too.  Hardee loves life so much and wants to continue to live as long as possible, with quality.

We are savoring this big chunk of good news!  It is still all about joy and all about Hardee.