Mitsy's new diagnosis

I posted this in the Cushing's board, but I wanted to let everyone know that Mitsy was diagnosed with Cushing's Disease today

It explains her hair loss, urinating outside the box, pot belly, etc. I had the vet test her for it yesterday after reading posts on the Cushing's board. And today we got the results back.

She has an ultrasound scheduled for Monday and then I'll have to probably make a hard decision. If it's too far along it might be her time

I'm very upset about it but I'll know more on Monday. I just don't want her to be in pain, and she doesn't act herself anymore. I wish I had known about the symptoms of Cushing's earlier because she's had the hair loss for almost a year now, but the vet said she was just over grooming.

I'll update this thread after the ultrasound.

 

I'm sorry to hear this. I hope it's not too far along.

 

I hope so too but I'm not very confident just because her symptoms have been showing for so long and no one knew the correct diagnosis unfortunately

 

My Tuxie had PDH Cushing's and lived for almost 2 1/2 years without any outside treatment other than extra supplementations and treating various health issues as they arose.. He had the hair loss, the pot belly, the impossible to regulate glucose levels, chronic pancreatitis, early CKD, heart murmur, and enlarged liver. From my research if they have not reached the stage where the skin is spontaneously tearing, there is still good quality time even without treatment. @Ana & Frosty has a Cushing's kitty who already had the skin tears and she started vetoryl for her Frosty. She has already noticed improvements with the hair coat and better glucose numbers. Every kitty responds differently, but where you are at right now is not necessarily time to make a final decision. My Tuxie was released to the Bridge due to suspected cancer and had a decent QOL for most of the 2+ years after he was diagnosed with Cushing's. Cushing's is not a death sentence. merely a reminder that some of our furbabies may not have as much time as we would like.

 

I'm hoping the medication is an option. I think I'm going to be pretty much on my own with the treatment since the vet has never dealt with a cushing's cat before. And unfortunately I've spent all of my money these past couple weeks with her visits and testing so going to a specialist isn't really an option
I'm going to have to do some research this weekend. I'm mostly concerned about it interacting with her insulin/diabetes but I'm not sure if it even does.

 

Sending you and Mitsy positive energy as you deal with this.

 

Cushing’s usually causes the diabetes, but medication for it doesn’t interact with insulin.

I understand about the expenses. Like I said, there may be options to fundraise online, etc .. you never know. My best friend’s cat was severely anemic and having seizures 3 years ago. She made a go fund me page to raise money for a bone marrow biopsy for her. She raised a good amount and got the biopsy, and the kitty got treated and is still doing well.

I know Mitsy is showing neurological signs too with the head tilt, uneven pupils, severe muscle weakness, and changes in activity and affection level. I know it’s a difficult decision, but you know your cat best and quality of life is definitely important to consider. Keep us updated on how she is doing and what the ultrasound shows on Monday. We are here for you and we are sorry you’re going through this!

 

If the ultrasound looks okay, I'm going to push for the medicine. (I was so stressed about the diagnosis that I forgot to even ask how much the ultrasound is going to cost!)

I'm glad Frosty is doing so well with the medicine!

 

Frosty’s US was about the same cost as the blood test for Cushing’s. He was not cooperating though, and they didn’t want to shave his belly because they were afraid to cause a skin tear, so it was “limited.” What they saw was one enlarged adrenal gland, which they felt could be caused by the pituitary tumor sending signals to the adrenal to make more cortisol. It basically got big due to having to work so hard. They couldn’t see the other adrenal glad - we don’t know if it’s because it’s smaller, or because he was struggling.
They also saw an abnormal pancreas with lots of cysts. They said this was due to his diabetes and insulin resistance. They also mentioned his big stomach that was full of food. Due to this they could not sedate him to do the test properly.

Hopefully this gives an idea of what to expect from the test.

I know money is tight but since you already have the workup done, you could look into taking the records (blood and US results) to an IM specialist so that they just charge you for the consult. A consult would be much cheaper than all of these tests... and maybe they could prescribe the medication.

 

They did say they were going to have to shave her, but they didn't mention sedation. I didn't even think about that.

 

She shouldn’t need to sedate her, most cats have it done totally awake and alert. Frosty is just extra anxious and high strung - my other 2 cats would have been fine with the test. I honestly probably wouldn’t have let them sedate him just for an ultrasound anyway, so I wouldn’t worry about that part. Sorry, didn’t mean to worry you needlessly

 

No problem! She's really chill so I don't think they'll have any issues, but you never know.

Now taking her temperature, on the other hand...that's the liveliest I've seen her in awhile haha