Month: November 2013

I’m new to the whole idea of blogging. I’m thankful I found this site via tripawds on Facebook. As soon as I can I would like to dive in and and start reading on this as much as I can. Just from support that I’ve had so far I know you can all relate to what I’m going through. It’s so true what people have said about second guessing yourself..I literally just finished typing my thoughts on rustys Facebook page “tripawd rusty” about questions I have rattling around in my head. It seems like you all are reading my mind. I really have no idea how to post images on here, but I just started posting regularly on rustys Facebook page. I post images of rusty and try to keep up with my updates so I can follow his journey and watch his amazing progress through it all. The surgery is scheduled for December 13th 2013. The surgeon thinks its reasonable to wait considering fibrosarcomas don’t tend to metastasize. That is the start of my two week vacation off of work. That way I can be there for him while he adjusts. Im not sure if I mentioned that Rusty is only 6. He’s a golden retriever and my oldest child:) just curious if anyone else has other dogs and if that caused any issues during the healing process???

The beginning of our journey started at the end of August 2013. I noticed a pea size lump on my golden retrievers front right leg. The vet told me to leave it alone, it was nothing. I asked for a biopsy. They told me it was too small for biopsy. They said if it bothered me and I couldn’t sleep at night that they could surgically remove it. I opted for removal. Surgery was October 9,2013. The results came back October 14th as fibrosarcoma. Dirty margins. October 23rd was the follow up appointment. The chest X-ray was clear. I was assured several times that although the margins were dirty, more tissue was removed than was submitted to the lab. October 26th, a grape size lump appeared at the sight of the last mass. I scheduled an appt with an oncologist. October 31st the oncologist confirmed regrowth of the tumor. I was scheduled for a surgery consult and surgery for November 7th. November 7, the surgeon gave me the harsh reality that due to the size, location, and invasive nature of the tumor this would probably need more than surgery. My options a combination of surgery,radiation, and questionably chemo. Or amputation which would most likely clean this mess up. Or a surgery and wait and see what happens, maybe an amputation if that second surgery doesn’t work. I’ve opted for amputation. Amputation surgery is scheduled for December 13,2013. I hope this is the right choice for him. I struggle with this decision….any thoughts and advise are appreciated.