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I am so distressed ..I noticed to 2 hard lumps on my 18 and a half year old Siamese female cats abdomen (on her nipples) and now in just two weeks time there are 3 more lumps all growing fast on her abdomen and one under her right arm ..do you think this is most likely cancer? ..should I have her put to rest? ..I love her more than anything in this world ..I am disabled and on low income and can't afford to pay for a lot of test ..every clinic I have phoned wants to do a number of expensive test to verify it is cancer before they will even talk about putting her to rest which I would find a way to pay if I believed there was a chance I could have her with me another year but at 18 and 2 months old and the preseance of the large fast growing lumps makes it seem most likely to me that it would be cancer? ..please give me some guidance fellow cat lovers ..should I find away to pay for all the test or with what I have told you about her is it most likely cancer and time for her to be put to rest ..she was in no pain when I first noticed the lumps but over the last few days she has taken a downward turn although she is eating ..she has slowed down considerably over the last 3 days and the lumps are growing ..her meow is starting to fade and all she does is sleep in the other room by herself and I can tell she is starting to feel discomfort ..I don't want her to be in pain but I also don't want to lose her but I think its time ..I knew she was getting older and it was just a matter of time but I hoped she had another year or two if I was lucky before I would lose her and I really hoped when it was her time she would pass away peacefully in her sleep here in her home ..Am I doing the wrong thing if I have her put to sleep? ..should I wait and see if she goes on her own over the next few days here at home? ..I don't want her to die alone in a cage by herself in some vet office

we feel your pain - you are in the place we all dread, and most of us have been there more than once

most vets will be able to have a good idea if it is cancer simply by feeling the lumps, and will not recommend tests just to confirm it - I think however you must get her to a vet tomorrow, and if nothing can be done ask if she can pass to the bridge at home, where you will be there to comfort her and ease her passing - a home visit costs more, but it makes that final goodbye so much easier

be strong for her - if she is at the end of her life, she needs your strength

Yes, for heaven's sake give her a chance. What have the vets said specifically?

I'm so sorry to read this.

My cat Kitten had a stomach lump which didn't cause any problems for 9 months, but after that she suddenly couldn't lie down comfortably. I took her to the Vet who told me it had grown and moved suddenly, so I made the decision we all dread, she was 19 years old. Like your cat, she hadn't shown any discomfort at all up until that point.

I agree with Kay - please get her to the Vet tomorrow. My Vet couldn't tell if it were cancer or not, but she did say that for it to grow and move so quickly, it probably was. We agreed at her age any tests would mean extra discomfort and that was something I couldn't ask her to face.

Please give your girl a gentle fuss from me and I'm sending you a {hug}.

I'm so sorry to read about your precious cat - we all know how distressing it is to face the awful realisation that the end could be in sight. Are you in the UK? If so you could try ringing the Blue Cross to find out if they will help with an initial cost to find out what the prognosis is. If it is worst case scenario do you have someone who can support you through the process? It really is a very peaceful release but no less upsetting so if someone can be with you to stay with her whether that's in the surgery or at home it will help. I have gone through this several times over the years in various circumstances and for the vet to come out to the house was worth the extra cost.

So sorry to read this too

I hope the vet can give you some advice.

I've been there too, it's a tough decision but you will make the right choice for your girl. Sometimes I've thought that the end was nigh in the past and then they've pulled through and had another happy and comfortable few months, this may not be the end.

Lin x

I'm so sorry to hear this, and understand how distressing it is for you. My old girl Lily had a lump on one of her mammaries which the vet wasn't too worried about, and given her age and fragility we decided to just keep an eye on it. Then it suddenly grew in size and I had her straight in to the vets. My vet said that in cats, lumps on the mammaries are usually cancerous 9 times out of 10, and the usual treatment would be to remove all of the mammaries to prevent it spreading. With Lily, as she's got so many other health issues, we decided to remove just the lump and the affected mammary and send it for tests, and in our case we were relieved to find it was benign. However, this could only be ascertained with tests, and even just local removal of one lump and tests cost over £250. In your case, given that the lumps are spreading, it does sound more aggressive, and the operation to remove them would cost considerably more.

Sadly I've lost two cats to cancer, and each time the final decline came suddenly and was very rapid. By that time the cancer was so advanced, and on internal organs, there was nothing that could have been done. You do at least need to take your puss in for a consultation, but I hate to say it, from what you describe the outlook doesn't sound positive. If your fears are confirmed, the kindest thing you can do is not to prolong her suffering if she really does feel ill and in pain. You know your puss, and you will know when she's reached that point.

I'm so sorry for the position you find yourself in, we've all been there on this site. I hope the vet can give you some hope, but you will only find out by taking your girl to see him.

She passed away last night peacefully in her sleep at home ..thank you for all your support

I'm so very sorry to read this, you obviously loved her very much and it's so distressing to see them going downhill. She's at peace now, RIP little puss. (((hugs)))

I am very sorry

Sweet dreams little one; RIP. Run free at the bridge

Sorry to read this, RIP little puss x

Oh, your little girl. She is not suffering now and she passed to the Bridge in her own time. Hugs to you. We all feel for you so much. X

I'm so terribly sorry about your little girl.

She was so well cared for and much loved and I'm sure she knew that.

Thinking of you xx

I'm so sorry to hear this, RIP at Rainbow Bridge dear little puss, my Kitten and Mischa will be there to play with you.

{{Hugs}}.

Oh so sorry to hear this...but take comfort from knowing she had a peaceful end in her safe home feeling loved.

Hope you're coping ok.

Lin x

thank you for all the kind words ..I am going to miss that little cat so much ..for the last 18 years she brought so much love and joy to my life
Im trying to take comfort in the fact that she had a very good long life and that she passed quick and peacefully in her sleep in her home
I spoiled her greatly and in return she gave me so much love
its going to take a long time getting use to not having her around

What an absolutely gorgeous girl!!

I think that in time you really will take comfort in the way that she went so peacefully. I know that with each of my pets I have always hoped that would be the way they would go. But it has never happened. A vet once told me that it is quite rare that they go in their sleep.

What a lovely and loyal friend she was.

Oh goodness, she is just lovely. It is very special that she crossed to the bridge so peacefully and in her own home. We are under such pressure when the decision has to be made to PTS because rarely do our babies make the decision to pass to the Bridge themselves. Your baby girl wanted to be with you in peace to the end. She is with you forever in your heart, as you know. Hugs.

What a beautiful girl she was. I'm so sorry to hear she couldn't fight her illness, but how lovely for her to go peacefully in her own home. I'm sure you'll miss her terribly. Do keep posting on here if it helps. We've all been through it and know how tough it can be.

I'm so sorry to read you lost your precious girl - her final gift to you not to have to make the awful decision for her. RIP little one.

My thoughts are with you. Take good care of yourself.

RIP little girl

What a sad time for you - I'm so sorry to read of your loss. She was a beautiful girl. I hope that you can take some comfort from all the happy memories you have and the love you shared.
Take care of yourself

Hi guys,

I recently lost my dear furry friend due to a mammary gland (and sweat gland) cancer and would like to share with you my experience with this horrible disease, since I wish I knew all this, before I was going though that awful period.
I first notice a small lump on my kitty’s belly in September last year. I was sure it was just some fatty lump, since it was just underneath the skin and very soft. I took her to a vet and he decided to took the tumor out. He told me, that it was probably a benign tumor. My first BIG mistake was, that I didn’t decide to do pathological examination of the tissue. So we went home, hopping that it was just a benign mass, and everything will be just fine. Well, everything was fine for about 5 month, when I discovered another mass on her belly. I took her to the vet, and again they proceed with the operation. Since tumors were much larger the second time around, I knew immediately it was cancer. The pathological report of the removed tissue confirmed it. What I would like to advise you is, before you decide to perform any massive operation on your cat, please take some time to carefully consider all the possible outcomes (if it is cancer, how long will you have with your pet before it progress, are there any alternative remedies you can give to your pet instead, do you have time/money to deal with all the possible consequences etc.). If I knew, what was going to happen later on, I would most certainly not go through with the operation and let my kitty enjoy her last months pain free. All operations are painful, and with the mammary glande cancer there is still very high chance, that even with all additional treatment (chemo, steroids, pain killers, etc.), the disease will gradually progress and eventually kill your dear pet (not in all cases but, VERY high percentage when the masses are larger than 3 cm). I (unfortuanately) decided to try with the operation- removing all visible tumors. Some of them were quite big, some small as a rise grain. Unfortunately my kitty managed somehow to remove three stitches by herself (even though she was wearing an e-collar), and needed additional operation 7 days later. At that time, I already knew, I had made a mistake. I was told, she was going to have at least a couple of months with us, so I hung on to those words. But as you know (or may not know), this type of cancer is so aggressive, that I started to notice new tiny pimples around the incision, just one month after the operation. At that time, we decided not to torture her any more with any additional vet visits, since she was a very shy cat, and vet visits caused her even more stress. The tumors were growing with the speed of light! Seriously, a tumor that was 1mm big the first week, has grown to a size of a golf ball in a month!!! My kitty gradually started to eat less and less, and the vet advised us, to try prednisolone, just to get her appetite back, and to stop cancer from further progressing in her lymph nodes (it was already there). For the first three, four days, she was a new cat – jumping around, eating, drinking… But then again, I could see, that this drug was VERY strong on her, even though I kept her on 1/2 pill of 5mg (Prednidale) tablet, 2 x per day (at that time weighing around 3.5 kg), which was half of the prescribed dosage. After she had her dose, she was such a dope for at least 4 hours, just so absent in general….so I decided to gradually (very important) remove her from steroids, and for the last 4 day days she was on Meloxidyl, which was just to make sure, she was not in any pain. Well, this drug - Moloxidyl is a completely different story, with a series of side effects (like stomach issues, kidney issues), but since we knew her time is coming to an end, we let her on this painkiller.
And my last words of advice - when the time comes to let you kitty go, don’t give her anything to eat, at least 12 hours before you take her to your vet. Cats can (and should) drink, but again, not during the last couple of hours. Nobody told me that, so I let my kitty drink just one or 2 hours before the vet came to euthanize her. When she received the first shot - the tranquilizer, she started to make horrible weowing voices and tried to vomit (even though she only had some water in her belly, and small portion of raw livers- her favorite food, which I gave her at least 10 hours before that). Hearing that made me scared to death, and sooooo angry with myself, that I let her drink/eat anything that day. She passed away just 2 ½ months after the second surgery.


So, please, try to remember the following:
1) Think carefully BEFORE you decide to perform any major operation on your cat, if it is possible, do a biopsy of the tissue to make sure you understand what you will be dealing with;
2) If you DO decide to go through with the operation, first of all make sure your cat is parasites free and in a good condition – meaning she is at least ½ kg (1pound) heavier than normal (she will lose that weight in the first week after the operation);
3) Make sure you are prepared for everything that follows and you have everything prepared at home (disinfectants, creams for better healing of the incision, special post-operative food, clean sheets, towels, all objects that can be easily broken removed – cat will be very dizzy during the first couple of hours after waking up);
4) Try to plan the surgery on Friday afternoon, so you will have plenty of time during the weekend just to carefully monitor your cat;
5) And lastly, when the time comes to let your friend go, DO NOT give her anything to eat at least 12 hours before the euthanasia. She can drink of course, but make sure she drinks at least 3-4 hours before that, since the tranquilizer injection can make her very sick.

I hope my sad experience (and my mistakes) will be helpful to any of you, when dealing with this horrible disease. Feel free to share this post to other pages.

(Written for my dearest friend, who is now watching over me from cat’s heaven. I will never forget you).