Lena's Prognosis

We got the results back from the cytologist -- a specialized kind of pathologist -- for the fluid aspirations they took from Lena's liver and spleen. As suspected, they are not favorable. Our wonderfully attentive veterinarian said they are indicative of lymphoma, at stage IV. The prognosis is median survival time from this level of cancer is 4 weeks, although they had plenty of disclaimers around that time. The tumors have not metastized into her lungs and bones yet though.

The options are limited at this late stage. There is a palliative drug treatment that does not actually extend the lifespan but may reduce some of the symptoms, such as fatigue and anorexia. If we were more aggressive, and the dog was younger, there is the possibility of administering chemotherapy by taking the animal in for intravenous injections weekly. At her stage, and age, they think that has about a 50% chance of adding 6 months to her lifespan. We have decided not to put her through that, and will make a donation in her name instead to our local clinic.

The growths are not "comfortable", and the weariness/fatigue she is experiencing will only increase, but she is not in pain currently. Jenn and I are closely monitoring her mood and activity to determine when we add pain management drugs for the final stages.

To get her tail wagging again we grilled a big T bone for her, which she chewed on with unusual relish. Realizing our time together is limited, we are full of joy to spend time with Lena. Every hound-doggy howl, each wag of the tail, every piggy snore is a blessing.

Snout Update

Following up on Dr. Jex's referral from Vermont, we took Lena to the top notch Animal Med Center in NYC, which is happily only a few blocks from the apartment. We took our aging basset hound in yesterday for an ultrasound on her liver & spleen. The procedure was handled by an actual radiologist, not a lab tech, and they interpreted everything right away. [When I have had radiology done for myself, it is generally handled by a bored lab tech, and results don't come back for days.] The follow on was that she went in for tissue aspirations today and they are trying to figure out if she has lymphoma or something benign. Pretty amazingly we live next to one of the nations best vet centers. It is staffed 24/7/365 and has 90 vets, with all kinds of specialities (oncology, radiology, ob/gyn etc). It's not cheap, but when you compare it to the delays and indifferent care you get in the human emergency room, it's clear how much unfunded mandates have hurt healthcare.

Anyways she is home and sleeping now.

What we have been doing the last few weeks....

Let's see ... my sister had us over to her apartment for dinner, where she and a friend made some great Italian food. You can see our loyal low altitude sidekick pestering both of them for nibblings.



My sister has done a good job decluttering her apartment and it has turned into a nice compact home that gets good light. The kitchen is pretty usable in fact; it doesn't really matter how big or small your workspace is since Lena will always get underfoot.



Our dear friends Jacques & Jill had a nice pool party out in Westchester, which was blessed by perfect swimming weather and great food and wine. I took the train up there and was graciously ferried back and forth to his house by Dale and Pappa.

There were a lot of serious old wines there, including 69 Heitz C block, 89 Fleur de Gay, lots of Corton Charlemagne and Batard Montrachet and more. Gio brought a pair of Dom's to compare 95 to 96 side by side, which was cool, but probably overkill by that point.


Zamfir after coming back from the groomers, reposing on his silk pillow. Whenever new sheets get put on the bed, he quickly pounces on them. He also loves to snooze in clean laundry; but he's learned the danger of sitting in the dirty laundry basket.