Questions for oncologist

Amy goes to the oncologist tomorrow. She's still eating about 2 jars of baby food per day with the help of MIRt. She alsdo gets fluids daily. No food for her after 10 pm tonight htough. She ate a whole jar of food completely...even licked the plate...today.

I do have some questions to ask the oncologist but was wondering if there were any that might not be obvious that i should ask.

Thanks
Chris

 

So glad Amy is eating well. Only question that comes to my mind is "what would you do if this were your cat?" I am hoping for the best for you and sweet Amy!

 

Jill, I think that your question, while may be appropriate for your normal vet, is really not of much use for an oncologist since the oncologist would not be familiar with your devotion to Amy nor of your financial situation. With regard to questions, I would not put much faith in the oncologist's remaining live prediction since it very very variable (ECID) and they usually are very very conservative. Depending upon the treatment, you vet may be able to do the chemo at less cost than at the oncologist. However, not all vets will do chemo since there are many regulations that must be followed and many vets do not want to get involves since they would infrequently do chemo. Also, if Amy is prescribed oral drugs, they are probably human drugs that can be procured at a local pharmacy at less cost than buying them from the vet. When Mario was on Leukeran, the oncologist charged about three time the cost I could get them at a local pharmacy.

 

Thank you for the update. Am still praying hard for your baby.

 

My vet does not do chemo. There is an internist close that does though. If I decide to go with chemo I will try to go there.
It's much closer, too. The oncologist is 1.5 hours away.

 

Two suggestions. First, write down all your questions (no matter how 'stupid') beforehand, and go through them with your oncologist. Yes, even the 'stupid' ones. You're basing important decisions on the information you gather; there are no 'stupid' questions.

Secondly, bring someone else with you, and have them take notes. You're going to be very stressed during the visit. Even though everything is going to seem crystal clear at the time, you'll find that there are parts of it that you forget or mis-remember. Having someone else doing the note-taking lets you concentrate on the gist of what the vet is saying, and relieves you of the pressure of trying to organise everything all at once.

Other than that, lots of (((hugs))) to you both!

 

Very good points. If you have a voice recorder, bring it along and ask to record; I've never been told no. We used a voice recorder and taped the entire consult. I was really amazed at how much I'd missed, when I replayed it after the appointment.

Also, regardless of whether you opt for chemo at the oncologist or internist, ask if re-check bloodwork can be done at your regular vet's. Bloodwork and x-rays are usually cheaper at regular vet, and the results or films can be faxed/brought to your next chemo appointment. We did re-checks, and pre-appointment labs (day or two before next chemo treatment) at our regular vet. Another advantage besides cost savings is if Amy's WBC count is too low for her next appointment, you'll find out ahead and won't have to drag her all the way there (esp if 1.5 hr away) just to find out that treatment has to be postponed till her counts come up.

Hope that helps. We'll keep Amy and you in our thoughts.

 

Sorry I missed this yesterday. Ask if radiation is an option. My Quirk had very good response to radiation, not so much to chemo. If radiation is a possibility ask about an every three week schedule for treatment rather than the more frequent treatments advocated at some oncology centers, the more frequest sessions are very hard on the cat.

 

I am just saying from my experience with an oncologist, I did ask what he would do. Since I was at the oncologist I obviously wanted to try to do all I possibly could. And the oncologist did give us a prognosis which was pretty accurate...of course ECID and so are the oncologists. I really do hope your visit goes well.