Bad news for the Squeakitty

I took Kiesha to the vet Friday afternoon. She was so good for the exam and the blood draw. I had this dreadful feeling that something was wrong with Kiesha. You know some times you get a gut feeling that this is your last year with a pet. I find myself watching Kiesha’s sides to make sure she’s still breathing when I find her asleep on the bed.
Kiesha asleep on my lap
The vet’s exam confirmed that the tumor on Kiesha’s thyroid had probably turned malignant because it had significantly increased in size since her last visit. The bad news was that the vet had also found a second mass about the size of a golf ball in Kiesha’s abdomen (towards the back).

kiesha_window
Right now we suspect that Kiesha has cancer. She isn’t a candidate for surgery. I wouldn’t put her through that, certainly not at 17 years old. My goal has always been quality of life with her. We’re going to keep an eye on Kiesha and see what happens. (No, we don’t have a prognosis of how much time she has left. It’s a wait and see and do what we can to make her comfortable.)

The vet took a blood panel and we’ll see how that looks on Monday. It will tell us how her organs are functioning as well as her thyroid levels. We can also do an ultrasound of her abdomen to learn more about the other mass. Treatment options might vary depending upon where the mass is — and if it is close to any organs or interfering with anything.

I think I’ve been in shock all weekend from this. She’s my last kitty of a set of four. I’ve had her since she was about six months old. She’s the sweetest kitty.

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