Lymphoma

[Saskatoonian]

My guy was diagnosed with lymphoma after we discovered a weird lump on his penis. He went from jumping around happily, if a little quietly, on Sunday to tanking on Monday - and when I say tanking, I mean ataxic behind, looking like he was foundering, and completely depressed. I thought he was going to die - and wasn’t the only one, so am not being dramatic. We thought EHV, EPM, did blood, biopsied the lump. T cell rich B cell lymphoma.

But we got him back enough over the past few weeks with softride boots and DMSO and dex for a couple of days (I know, I know, trust me), and though he’s still not right behind, his current only symptom is that he’s not eating well. So in consultation with my vet, who’s consulted with several others, and my own research (secondary to vet’s advice, but also consistent with it), the plan is just to keep him comfortable and happy and see how he does.

So I’m looking for anecdotes, now that evidence is in (such as it is). Would love to hear from those who’ve gone through this. I know there’s probably no light at the end of the tunnel, but wouldn’t mind a sense of how long it’s been for others and what the tunnel contained.

Ugh. Such a nice horse.

[Maythehorsebewithme]

My experience was not a good one.

My 24 year old heart horse went suddenly downhill, and the vets said it was lymphoma. He came back amazingly on dex. Vets told me that the dex would eventually stop working, but take him home (he was at a clinic) and when things went south, make the tough call.

Hard as it was, I put him down at the clinic, while he was still feeling great. Stuffed him with carrots and treats, and did the deed. I could not see waiting for him to suffer. Also, he was boarded and I did not want to put the burden on the BO to keep checking on him, waiting for the inevitable.

[GreyDes]

I also had a not good experience. My husband’s late teens gelding was diagnosed with this in the same location. This was 15+ years ago and at least at the time our vet said there was no viable treatment.

We had him at home and chose to keep him comfortable until we couldn’t. Unfortunately, he deteriorated fairly quickly after the diagnosis. The biggest signs for him were lack of ability to keep weight on (historically he’d been an easy keeper) and clearly being uncomfortable moving faster than a slow walk.

Hugs and best wishes for figuring out the best path forward.

[EventingChase]

*** photos of horse in surgery at the end. Don’t look if medical pics give you the icks.

My horse (7 year old Connemara Pony) was just diagnosed with Lymphoma in February.

He was fine in the morning when I rode and then that afternoon had a large swelling in his throat-latch we thought was allergic. Steroids and antihistamines did not bring it down and he started to choke.

He went into the hospital where he had to stay isolated as they were worried about strangles but when that test came back negative and after several radiographs and ultrasounds they realized what they were looking at was a cystic like mass.

Due to location and the fact that he had no other medical struggles (bloodwork good, weight good, etc). The vets thought the large swelling they were seeing on ultrasound was an esophageal cyst which while incredibly rare is benign.

Because of the delicate and dangerous nature of where it was, even to biopsy would require him going under full anesthesia so I elected to have it removed. When sent to pathology it came back as lymphoma.

Prognosis isn’t great; 6 months to 2 years maybe before it pops up somewhere else. I don’t know that I would have done the surgery had I known it was Lymphoma before I did it.

He really struggled with infection and inflammation after surgery and swallowing but that seems to be improving. The layrangeal (sp) nerve was damaged during the surgery so he roars now.

But, for the moment, he looks great and he’s back in work and really happy. So, I’m just hoping for a long remission and that when it comes back it’s clear and an easy choice.

Trying to upload photos from surgery and of the mass of anyone likes to see weird/gross medical photos.

[Saskatoonian]

Thanks, everyone, and sorry you had experiences to share. EC, good luck with your boy - that mass is HUGE!

It amazes me that they can be fine one day and BAM serious symptoms but I guess that’s the nature of lymphoma. My guy is comfortable right now - a little iffy on eating but holding weight at the moment - and I just hope I make the call at the right time.

[endlessclimb]

My late mare had lymphoma. It was caught pretty early, I think - her masses were lumps on the surface, and they would appear and disappear at will. Neck, face, girthline.

We managed for 2-3 years on daily prednisolone. Then, one side of her hindquarters atrophied severely in a very short period of time, and she went ataxic. Knowing that no matter what, the end was coming sooner than later, and knowing that I promised her I would not allow her to go down “ugly” if I could help it, I elected to say goodbye instead of pursue whatever exactly caused the atrophy.

Here’s an example of how they would come and go. The pictures were taken a month apart.

[Saskatoonian]

That’s what happened with the lump we found - vet went to check it a couple of weeks after we biopsied and it was gone! It was so bizarre. So I suppose it’s lucky we found it or we’d still be in the dark. The only symptoms we currently have are ventral edema and lack of appetite. Well, visible symptoms, anyway.

I’m so sorry about your horse - made the same deal with mine, and hope I’m a day too early rather than too late. Sigh.

[joiedevie99]

An old barn I was at went through this with a lesson pony. The lumps came and went quickly 9 months to a year before there were other symptoms and he was diagnosed. He bounced back on the steroids for 2-3 months before they started losing their effectiveness. They let him go very quickly after that.

[fargaloo1]

So sorry you are going through this. Two years ago we lost our 26-year-old ArabX to GI lymphoma. In January, he was still galloping and kicking up his heels on the trails. He started losing weight in February and had some loose poops, but we chalked it up to a change in hay. By the end of February, we realized something else was going on when he developed a cough, sent him to a regional hospital for evaluation and got the diagnosis. We brought him home and put him on prednisolone, which gave him a new lease on life for a few months – got his appetite back, started putting on weight, and seemed comfortable and happy. I’m glad we had those months because we could love on him, feed him anything he wanted, and plan for the inevitable. He started to crash at the end of June – we maxed out his steroid dose for a few days to keep him comfortable and make preparations (as if you can ever be prepared) and said goodbye. We were told he had about 4 months after diagnosis, and that turned out be eerily accurate. To be totally honest, I regret that I didn’t let him go two days earlier, because his last day wasn’t comfortable – he developed “firehose” diarrhea, which couldn’t have been pleasant for him. Broke our hearts – we got him for our daughter when she was a kid and had him for 20 years. Just the best, best boy.

In retrospect – he had had a three subcutaneous bumps over the years: on his flank, his cheek, and his chest. We had one biopsied and were told it was a benign schwannoma. I think it may have been misdiagnosed. I had been inclined in the past to dismiss these kinds of bumps as inconsequential, but I am a lot more vigilant with my other horses after this experience.

Again, so sorry you are facing this. Steroids are pretty wonderful for giving them a good quality of life before the inevitable comes. Hugs to you.

[beowulf]

No advice as my experience hasn’t been very positive either, just lots of hugs and sympathy.

[Saskatoonian]

Thanks, everyone, for chiming in. The whole thing has been such a shock - seems like a common theme. I’ve gotten to the point where I just want to know what the early signs of a steep decline are, so I can let him go beforehand. Heck of a place to be - and seems there are no right answers. Horses. Sheesh.

ETA I’ve already got a message in to my vet but wonder what others have done about having something on hand - dex? pred? Buehler? - to make a tanking horse more comfortable while waiting for the vet. I mean, the decision’s made, and everyone knows it, so that’s my biggest fear.

[FormalAlter1]

Very sorry you are going through this! If you search the forums there is a story about Calvin, a jumper with lymphoma. You could probably find quite a bit of information on that thread.