Shawn and I got Sylvia as a kitten, not more than 6 weeks old, one month before we were engaged. Born to a stray, she came into in our lives by luck, joining Malcom--the cat Shawn had from his bachelor days in Arizona. She stole our hearts instantly and we loved her from day one. Well, maybe not Malcom, but he grew to love her as evidenced by his constant grooming of her and his protection of her from other animals. For the first months that we had Bella (our yellow lab), Malcom wouldn't let Bella get too close to or too playful with Sylvia.
While Malcom is shy and hesitant around strangers and friends, Sylvia is always friendly and curious, making quick friends of any visitor. There is nothing as inviting and loving as the yellow wide-eyes of Sylvia as her tail flickers behind her.
On Friday, we were told by our veterinarian that Sylvia has kidney lymphoma. She had lost a lot of weight in the last few months and had been throwing up. Her symptoms fluctuated, whenever we thought that maybe we should take her in to the vet, she would appear to get better. We also thought the weight loss was from the stress of the move to IL. But the last few weeks, she lost more weight and was throwing up more than ever. The vet took x-rays and her kidneys were twice the size they should be. After more testing this past week with results that were initially inconclusive, the final terrible results from the pathologist came back on Friday.
The news, as anyone can imagine, is devastating. There are some treatment options, and we will be exploring those, but the outlook is grim no matter what. Apparently, renal lymphoma in cats is one of the least responsive types of cancer. Successful treatment might give us another year at best.
If Sylvia can have a decent quality of life, relatively pain-free and happy, in that year (or less), it will be worth it. In the last 6.5 years, she has brought joy and happiness into our lives every single day. The mornings waking up with Sylvia sleeping on my chest. Her widened paws and big eyes when she wanted to be pet. The little cry when Shawn would playfully pinch the tip of her tail. Her little pink nose and grey 'goatie'. How small she gets when she curls up in my lap when I am at the computer. Her white paws so gracefully pushed together as she sits in her 'paperweight' position. And, of course, her flirty leg. Nearly impossible to describe, but Sylvia, when she wants to be pet, will stretch herself out against a wall, and push out one of her back legs and hold it there. Once performed, it is irresistible: one must pet her.
We don't know how we are going to proceed or what will happen. We don't know what to expect or how to deal with this. But we know one thing for sure: we will always love Sylvia. By sharing our lives, she has made them infinitely better.
SEPT. 13TH UPDATE:
Today we took Sylvia to a specialist in small animal oncology at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. We are trying to gather all the information we can to make the right decision as well as an educated decision.
After some discussion with the doctor, we decided to start the process of treating and managing her cancer. They ran some additional tests to establish a baseline and the results were not good. She is severely anemic and extremely dehydrated. So much so that she is in need of a blood transfusion and fluids. This needs to be done before administering any type of treatment. So Sylvia will stay in their critical care unit for a few nights.
It is highly likely that with the transfusion she will have more energy and her appetite will return. Together with the proper amount of fluids she should respond well to the treatment. If managed properly, this treatment could extend her life safely and happily for several more months (or even longer) giving us all more time together. What is most important to us is her quality of life and working to maintain that.
She has her good days and her bad days. She still has some of that spunk left in her and we're not ready to give up on her. She is still fighting and so are we.
Thank you all for your well wishes and hugs. They mean so much to us and to Sylvia.