I realized it has been a while since I posted!

I thought I would check in and give everyone an update on how Oakley is doing.  This past Monday he had his 2 week post-radiation check-up.  He is doing surprisingly well as far as the severity of the side effects.  Side effects are quite noticeable now and started to become quite visible since treatment has ended.  His left inner eye lid is finally starting to heal, but he's losing more hair around the eye.  Also, he's losing hair under his right eye.  We found out that they radiated him on both sides of his face to make sure they get all of the tumor.  But, besides some hair loss and eye watering, he is in very good spirits.  The doctor said that the tumor should continue to shrink over the course of the next couple of months.  She recommended that we come back in a month so they can do some more bloodwork, and they would like to get a couple of chest x-rays to make sure that the cancer has not spread to his lungs, which is what this type of cancer can do as it progresses.  His lungs were clear of any sign before treatment, so hopefully that is what we will find again.  Three to 6 months after radiation treatment is when we would decide to have them do another CT scan to see just what the radiation has done to the tumor.  It sounds like if it's small enough, they can then go in and remove it surgically, which, if everything went okay, would continue to prolong his life and keep the cancer at bay.  The use of Piroxicam, which he is still currently taking, will also prove beneficial in controlling the cancer; at least I am hopeful.  I've read some blogs from other dog owners who did not choose radiation, but just did Piroxicam and a couple of other drugs, and one owner said her dog was going on 3 years survival.  So, it does give me some hope.

Here are some pics showing some of the side effects of the radiation:

You can see the lighter fur under his eyes - the middle pic is blurry, but I was trying to get a shot of his inner eyelid, but it didn't work out very well.  I just saw today that right above his right eye, he's losing more fur.  It's like it's getting rubbed right off.  Poor guy... :(

Just checking in...

Okay, I said I was going to get a picture of Oakley's eye.  I haven't done it yet, and now probably won't.  Thankfully, the inflammation is going down, although his eye is still watery.  What's weird is that his other eye is watering now too, but thankfully not irritated or anything.  A part of me wonders if the excess tears from his right eye are somehow overflowing into his left eye...is that possible?  I have no idea.  He has his 2-week post radiation appt on Friday, so that is a question I will be asking the doctor. 

Oakley has been doing really well so far.  He sleeps a little more than he used to though, but sometimes I wonder if it's just that it feels better to keep his eye closed because of the irritation.  Not sure.  But, he is also playing, in fact, he was VERY mischievious this evening.  Going crazy, getting into stuff, barking, and dragging his bed all over the house.  He's also eating really well, too. 

Both dogs were pretty excited about it snowing - they were pretty happy waking up Saturday morning with freshly fallen snow to play around in.  They were out for about 2 hours running around and then just lounging on the deck in the snow.  However, once it gets a little bit colder, Oakley will not be hanging out there too long.  His feet get too cold.  He'll sit there and lift his paw in the air, and when the other gets old, he puts that paw down and lifts the other.  It's super funny, especially when he's trying to do the same thing with his back legs!!  :)  Maya, on the otherhand, she'll spend all day out there if I let her - which I don't, of course.  But, she's built for this kind of weather, and frankly, she's got enough insulation with her thick coat and she IS a little bit on the plump side...hehe.

So, for now, everyone is doing great!

Talk to you all soon!

Just a quick update

Just wanted to update everyone on Oakley's eye situation.  The doctor examined his eye and they did a stain on it to make sure it wasn't scratched, which it wasn't, thankfully.  However, they do think it is a side-effect as a result of the radiation.  She said it could get a bit worse before it gets better.  She gave me basically the same type of salve that I used the other night on his eye and said to put it in twice a day for 7 days, but if after 7 days it's still bad, to continue with it until our appointment next Friday (2-week post radiation checkup).  He paws at it just a teeny bit, and he does like it when we kind of put our hands over his eye and give it a gentle rub.  Maybe it is more itchy than painful...hopefully. 

While we were there waiting for the medication at the pharmacy, I heard someone shout, "Hey, Oakley!"  Oakley got so excited as a brunette walked up.  It was Susan, whom I had talked to several times over the phone through the course of treatment.  He definitely recognized and jumped up and down, wagged his tail, did little spins around.  It was really cute.  Then another girl came by and shouted the same thing basically and Oakley went all nuts again and seemed so happy to see her.  It definitely made me see with 100% certainty that he was well cared for while he was there. 

I'm going to try and get a picture of Oakley's eye.  It's not really gross or anything, but I just want to post it as documentation of how things are progressing.

Heading to the U this afternoon

I got an appointment to see the doctor today at the U to examine his eye.  It still looks terrible, and it's goopy.  He does wince when you touch the area, so obviously something is not right.  I hope it is something simple to treat (gosh I hope so!).  I also hope that I'm only charged a recheck fee, not the usual $150 doctor fee.  Oh well, either way, it has to be done.  He's got his harness on and he's ready to roll!  :)

First Monday after completion of treatment

It was really nice not having to get up extra early and get Oakley to the hospital.  What a huge relief to be done.  However, he's been super tired overall since Friday and now his eye is really rather red and inflammed in the inner corner.  The doctor said he should be seen right away to determine if it's irritation caused by the radiation, or a scratch or other infection.  I hope we can get in tomorrow.  I had some left over eye medicine used for infections/scratches, etc and have put a little bit in.  I'm not sure if that was a good idea or not.  It seemed to bring down the inflammation a tad until I just fooled around with getting a little more in there.  Secondly, I'm not sure if the doctor would freak if she knew I did this.  I hope it looks better after 8 hrs...it looks painful, honestly.  Thankfully, he has quit pawing at it.  I'm not sure what I will do if I can't get to the U.  I really don't want to take him to the regular vet whatsoever.  I guess we'll see what they say tomorrow, but you'd think if one of their patients needed to get in after just finishing radiation therapy that they would somehow squeeze us in...I have this feeling though we are just beginning to have to deal with eye problems.

Besides the eye issue and him seeming tired, he's doing pretty good otherwise; he was quite playful tonight with Maya and he's still eating great, etc.  I would have taken the dogs out tonight, but it's been raining all night.  Yuck.  I turned the furnace on for the first time this season; 64 degrees in the house was just too cold for me!!

Good night - I'll post back soon.  I hope to have some news about Oakley's eye tomorrow.

Treatment is over - Yay!

Friday was Oakley's last day of treatment!  It was a long 4 weeks.  It was much more stressful in the beginning not knowing what to expect and so forth.  Oakley really did great throughout this whole experience and held up well to the daily anesthesia and just crazy schedule.  Even though we hadn't seen any side effects, there is still a good possibility they will start to creep up now.  In fact, I noticed today that Oakley's right eye is a bit red in the corner and it's watering.  I think it's kind of itchy.  He is trying to swipe at it with his paw and if I rub it, he moans as if I'm scratching an itch for him that was really bothering him.  I think we will have problems with his right eye.  I mean, it was in the direct field of radiation - how could it not get damaged?  I'm worried about what we might see now that treatment is over.  I really hope side effects will be fairly mild.  We have to go back in 2 weeks for his post-radiation check-up.  I hope at that time, he'll be doing fantastic.  We'll then have to make a decision in the coming months whether or not we will do another CT scan to if the treatment had any effect on the tumor.  How awful it would be if it did nothing...I just can't believe though that that would be the case, but nothing is guaranteed.

I will continue to post on a regular basis and let you all know how Oakley is doing.  I hope that I can continue to be able to post only positive news about Oakley, and I hope to be able to do that for some time to come.  Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers!