An Update on Pickle: 8 Weeks Since Her Cancer Diagnosis

Thanks so much to all of you who have commented and left well-wishes for Pickle. Pickle and Team Pickle appreciate them very much. 

For all those, who don't know the back story: At the onset of January 2018, my cat Pickle (aged 8.5 years) was diagnosed with adenocarcinoma, the colorectal type being most likely. A detailed account of the background to this, her conventional veterinary treatment to date and her diagnosis is available in this post. 

Today's post is a brief update on what we have been up to over the past eight weeks, discussing dietary changes, supplementation and some general information that helped me cope in the initial phase after receiving the sad news.

Colorectal Adenocarcinoma - Average Life Expectancy

According to available veterinary statistics on this type of cancer, Pickle was given an average life expectancy ranging from 8 weeks to 18 months from the point of diagnosis.

Today, Thursday, 1st March 2018, marks the eight-week point. 

Pickle -  8 weeks after her diagnosis with colorectal adenocarcinoma

Pickle - 8 Weeks after her Cancer Diagnosis

As I'm writing this, Pickle is lying curled up on a towel next to the laptop, having a digestive snooze after her lunch of turkey, pumpkin and turkey broth. Weekly weigh-ins confirm that she has maintained her weight and she continues to have a healthy appetite. The presence of both blood and mucous in combination with loose, smelly stools prompted us to seek veterinary assistance at the end of last year. Now, two months into the New Year, I'm pleased to say that her bowel movements have improved quite considerably. She is no longer passing loose stools accompanied by visible, bright red blood. Nevertheless, we are a long way away from optimum quality in the bowel movement department. 

When first receiving the detailed analysis of Pickle's histological sample, I was upset, very insecure and utterly intimidated by the diagnosis. I anticipated a rapid decline of her health over the coming weeks and, as a result, initially concentrated my research on feline palliative care. Thinking along those lines, my thoughts concentrated on the question of how to assess with confidence whether she was in any pain at any given time; and how to determine which steps to take in such a scenario - be it to relieve pain temporarily or permanently. I found objectively assessing Pickle against the application of this quality of life scale particularly helpful and reassuring. Measured against these indicators, Pickle appears to be in good health overall.

Talking about reassurance, I also took great comfort in reading accounts of feline cancer patients with an uplifting message. Especially Nate's cancer story stands out. It's of interest to all those, who find themselves facing a similar diagnosis in a companion pet. When doing your research, you will come across so many disheartening tales and case studies. The account of tomcat Nate's health improving is a welcome exception, incredibly informative and an encouragement for all those who either have to pursue the holistic route because all other options have been exhausted, or those, who wish to postpone or forgo the use of conventional treatment protocols (i.e. steroids, corticosteroids, chemo - or radiotherapy) in favour of holistic measures.

Monitoring Pickle's Overall Health and Dietary Changes

With her digestion improved, Pickle has so far not displayed further signs of anything majorly out of kilter, but she seems to suffer from a recurring rash in her eyebrow area. When first spotted I tried to eliminate possible triggers and removed cooked chicken from her diet. This seemed to have done the trick for a while as her rash disappeared. Yet, as of late, it appears to have returned and more investigation is required on my part.

As we are unable to determine the stage of Pickle's cancer, we have opted for a three-pronged holistic approach: 

• A change in diet and a transition from pouch food to home-cooked, and eventually, raw food
• The addition of supplements / herbal medications 
• Constant monitoring of her behaviour and overall health with a view to developing a long-term, individually-tailored homeopathic care plan.

During the first six weeks following her operation (extraction of teeth and removal of colorectal polyp), I decided to concentrate on monitoring the nutrition and digestion of all three cats. I devised a simple spreadsheet, in which I recorded their food intake, bowel movement activity and a description of their individual stools as well as anything else that I found worthy of noting down. 

Keeping such a log can be very helpful, not only as it gives cat guardians something useful and proactive to do. A log will also prompt further thinking, allow you to be more confident in your own assessment of the situation and when consulting with your veterinarian. I am currently no longer keeping a detailed daily log, but I am continuing to write notes on all three cats as and when I feel it's necessary to record observations. 

Alongside the monitoring, all three had to undergo radical changes to their diets. This dietary transition started in mid-December 2017 and it's taken over two months before we arrived at the current dietary arrangements, which are tolerated and well-received by all three resident felines: from an initial phase of boiled chicken and plain rice, which was recommended by her conventional vet but didn't produce satisfactory results, to our current menu of poached turkey and pumpkin with added raw meat sides. In between we had episodes of trial and error with cooked beef, grain-free pouched foods and we tested around four different types of raw food before getting hold of a variety, which seems to be enjoyed by all three. 

From the myriad of accounts detailing owners' experiences of changing their cats' diets, one aspect stands out the most: Making adjustments to any cat's diet is often a long and arduous journey. This is especially true when transitioning older cats from a commercial diet to raw food. Having extensively researched feline diet matters over the past three months, I am getting the general impression that the changes we have been able to implement thus far, are indeed serving us well for now.

Transitioning Pickle's sister, Mietze, to raw food looks promising. In fact, she has taken to raw food like a fish to water. Pebble, the youngest cat, who on occasion appears completely underwhelmed by the changed menu, has been spotted enjoying the odd raw bite as well. Pickle, by contrast, clearly prefers home-cooked turkey with pumpkin, but is making steady progress towards opting for her side portion of raw food.

Mietze - our resident raw food connoisseur

Having researched and tried several dietary and herbal food supplements to support their digestion, we seem to have settled on slippery elm. As Mietze also has a sensitive stomach, she has equally benefited from its addition to her breakfast. Slippery elm inner bark powder either has no taste or doesn't offend their tastebuds, as all my cats will happily eat food laced with it. The same thing cannot be said about other dietary supplements, which I have tried to add over the course of the past eight weeks. 

Now that all cats seem more at ease with their new routines, I will continue to work on a more detailed account of Pickle's condition in preparation for my next consultation with her homeopathic vet. Here, I will have a chance to discuss my observations with the aim of working out an individually-tailored homeopathic care plan. In the mean time, I make a point of consciously enjoying every minute I am allowed to share with her, Mietze and Pebble.