do i do chemo on my 16 mth old cat

[maxliztay]

on Tuesday my baby boy cat 16 mth could not breath well so i took him to the vets ,they said he had fluid on his lounges and i needed to take him to vet hospital..in the hospital after more x rays it was a mast/ tumour and basically they said he does not have long to live but with chemo he will live a good quality of life for a year  ..i really do not know what to do .do i put him through this chemo at such a younge age or do i just spend some time with him and love him untill its time to say goodbye..will the chemo make him sick i dont want him to suffer anymore and have to put him through something that will make him feel bad to give him just another year :(

[lover1228]

I love ferrits but found out the hard way that they are very seseptable to cancer and 95%die of cancer.a DR told me that cemo is hard for people but worse for a animal.thank god we the right to make the rite to die desision for our anmals but people have to suffer.Many of the animals do not make it threw.I do not want to sound curel but if it was one of my dogs or cats I would put them to sleep and donate some of the thousands of dollars you would spend to a local shelter(NO KILL SHELTER) I live for my animals.my heart goes out to you IF you need to talk more please do and i am truely sorry but you do not have to put your animal threw so much misery

[Jade59]

We, too, had someone come to our home when it was Jade's time.  It was one of our best decisions.  It was as you say...'peaceful and quiet'.  While it was expensive, it was well worth the money.  Nearly 2yrs later, my husband and I still talk about that day; we do not regret it for a minute.    

maxliztay...keeping your boy in my thoughts.  I think Samantha gave you excellent advice.  Please keep us posted.  We care.

[SamanthaCat]

I'm sorry I don't have an answer for you but wanted to express my sympathy for your situation. It's rare for such a young cat to have cancer. Where is the tumor? Is it near the throat (based on what you said about the lungs)? If so, chemo is very tough in that area as it can affect taste and the use of the tongue, in which case, it might be more compassionate to let nature take its course. It might be worth getting a second opinion as well.  How was it determined to be cancerous based on an x-ray? My late cat was found to have cancer based on an x-ray, too, due to location (near the liver) and other symptoms, but her personality was not one to tolerate the type of frequent vet visits required for chemo, and so I just let it happen naturally. She lived almost a year and didn't suffer until the end. When the time came, I knew, and had someone come to the home and it was peaceful and quiet. She was 13. If you do let nature take its course, I always recommend having someone come to the home. And I only recommend this course of action when the end is imminent and the suffering is too much. You have a tough decision ahead. She's so young that chemo might work but why did the vet say chemo would give her a year as opposed to cure the cancer? A second opinion seems in order. Best of luck and my heart goes out to you and your kitty.