Tumor Removal - When to consider it

[marissaceleste]

So, my boy Finn has a mammary tumor. I posted on here a while ago (January) that I thought he had one, but you could only slightly see it from a certain angle and when you felt it, it didn't really feel like anything. My vet saw him at that time and we decided to wait and see if it grew or not.

It is a bit bigger now and visible, but still small. I can feel around it, it's about 1 cm across? And not attached to the body. It appears at least to be slow growing.

I don't know Finn's exact age, but I've had him for 1.5 years and he was about 4-6 months when I got him, so he's approaching 2 if not already there. He is otherwise healthy and his usual self.

Here's a picture of my cute boy just for good measure

I've only dealt with mammary tumors once before, and it was with one of my first rats, so I didn't really know what my options were at the time. Is it worth it to have it removed at his age? Worth it in the sense of his well being and quality of life, not money. Like I know anesthesia risk is higher as they age and there's a risk that the tumor will just come back.. I don't want to put him through all of that if he will just be happier to live out his days with the tumor. I am also moving across country at the beginning of August. All my rats are coming with me, but it's an additional factor in terms of stressing them out...

Does anyone know the approximate cost for a standard mammary tumor removal in Toronto? I know a lot of people use Dr Munn, who is not my vet, but I would consider going to him because I hear nothing but great things about him for rats.

 

[Petunia]

I can't help you with the cost for your area as I'm in the US, but as far as removing the tumor, that seems to be very much a personal choice.
you said it's still very small, and apparently is also growing very slowly- for it to only be about 1cm after 6 mos, that's really slow.
Personally I wouldn't do the surgery at all, until/unless the tumor became so large it interfered with his quality of life. and it seems like there's a good chance it never will get that big.

just my two cents. I've only had females with mammary tumors and most of the ones who didn't have the tumors removed ended up passing for other reasons.


your boy is really cute by the way! <3

 

[Joanne]

And I am on the opposite end of the spectrum.
I had a lovely girl who had mammary tumours. I elected not to do surgery because her HED was significant and I was worried she wouldn't heal if she dragged her incision on the floor all the time. Eventually her tumours got so large the skin ruptured over one of them. It quickly healed, but I knew that was a temporary reprieve. I had to euthanize a bright and lovely girl just because of those stupid tumours. She was almost three but still had so much life left in her.
Friday my girl Tabi is scheduled for her third tumour removal. The tumour is small. Doing the surgery now will ensure it is minimally traumatic, relatively quick and hopefully she will recover quickly. She is a rescue and I don't know how old she is, but I am guessing around two years old. But once again, she is bright and happy and has so much life left to live.
But yes, it is a personal decision. Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[SQ]

If the tumour continues to be extremely slow growing then it may never become large enough to interfere greatly with his life
However, removing a tumour when it is small is much easier on your rattie
and the tumour may not continue to grow so slowly

Personally, I have tumours removed as soon as I notice them, when they are still very tiny
unless there are other reasons to wait or not have surgery, such as other health issues
I don't want to ever have to put a rat to sleep because I waited to have a tumour removed
(This is also one important reason for having girls spayed)

It is a personal decision and there are several factors to take into account
such as how fast it is growing, his age, his health, and if you have a good rat vet

As for cost. different vets charge different amounts so you need to ask the vet.
Mammary tumours do not come back but when girls have a mammary tumour they are likely to have more. I don't know if it is the same with boys.
As for being worth it given his age, it is impossible to say .... he might die in a month or live for another 6 months or a year

good luck with your decision

 

[RatPack]

I agree with SQ and Joanne with having it removed sooner rather than later...the incision will be smaller and that should help with his recovery time and it will be gone..you won't have to wait and watch for it to grow bigger..You can just enjoy him in all his cuteness