bad, bad, bad,bad news for Mika

[carolh]

Hi everyone,

Mika's mira vista results just came in.  The antigen count went from 4.7 to 76!!!!!  She was off meds for one month after going one month longer after the 4.7 result.  I am DISTRAUGHT.  Any cheering words from you will be helpful.  I'm doing deep breathing like mad but it isn't helping.  Weird, we went walking on a lake this morning and I was watching her race through the snow like her usual crazy girl self and thinking to myself, "She must be done with this awful disease.  She looks so good."  Have you heard of a result as high as 76?  I'm heading to the vet in a minute to go pick up more itra.  Phooey.

Carol

[Wilson3]

Carol I am so sorry to hear about Mika!
Look on the bright side Mika responded to treatment the first time so will again.
I had asked my vet about how we would know if Wilson was truly cured when we stopped treatment he said we really do not  ..(no pee test then) we went with his x rays and blood count  his white blood count became normal slowly and x rays clear so that was telling us his body was no longer fighting anything

no test is ever always right and I do not really understand how the different numbers came up (from your other post) but I would call them in the morning and ask how they messed this up. That was not a good thing Thank goodness Mika has you making sure things are right and caught things before they got really bad again.
What does your vet say about all this?
Feel so bad for you guys.. I know this time things will go better stay on treatment as long as Mika can handle it
If I remember right doesn't Mika have something already that is high in the pee?
You guys stay strong and things will get better but do call the lab and ask them how they could mix this up? Demand to talk to someone high up. They need to make up for this mistake!
You guys will be in my thoughts as always
Kristin and Wilson

[carolh]

Thanks Kristin,

I appreciate your words SO MUCH!  Yes, we beat it back once so we're heading into battle with this darned disease again.  Mika was very sad to have stuff put in her eyes again.  Poor baby.  But she likes her duck treat after getting it done.  I'm a bit calmer now.  Yes, I will call Mira Vista when I get home from working at the Humane Society shelter today.

Yes, Mika's system goes too alkaline so we have to work to keep her acidity up.  Unfortunately, itra takes us in the wrong direction. 

My vet is not high on Mira Vista though he is glad we have such a tool.  He called them twice yesterday but didn't get any real information (though on one call, they admitted a "mistake" on the first test that yielded two results).  He said we have to be aware that it gives a fuzzy result, not something you can go to the bank on. 

I'm so happy for Wilson that he beat this disease.  Wilson, you inspire us.

How is Darla getting along?

Carol

[evayola]

Carol,

I completely understand how you are feeling. We thought Marge was in the clear and we too stopped treatment but it is just so lodged in her bone that we had to go back on meds. Marge has been battling this crap for 2.5 yrs now! I feel for Mika, I know how much Marge hated eye drops. Hang in there though, Mika is a fighter AND she has been acting very normal you said so that means she must feel pretty good. Dont worry too much we are all here for you. That is really unfortunate about MiraVista. I would most definitely give them a call.

Hugs & St Bernard Drool,

Eva & Marge

[hotdog]

I am so sorry to hear your Mika is once again having such a hard time, i too am going thru this horrible mess with my little dog hot dog, she came to me 3 yrs ago after someone dumped her off to suffer, she was infested with fleas, ticks and so skinny because of tape worms, i have never seen such a sweet little pup in such a mess, after 3 years of having the time of her life, playing with my mollie dog, carefree day's playing along the lake and walking on the trails of Land Between the Lakes in TN. she has been diagnosed with blasto. the discovery was made 12-21-09. she has lost both of her eyes and is on ltraconazole twice a day untill 1-18-10. then she will be on it once a day for about 5 or 6 months. she also is seemingly much better, eating great, drinking good, but i too wonder if we will ever feel peace that this monster is gone from within her. so my thoughts are with you and all we can do is do the best we can. from the looks of this wonderful site, there are allot of us strugeling with this together. hope this reaches you because i am not real sure of how to get my messages out yet, but i will! jeanie   

[Wilson3]

remember ...
Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible. -- Anonymous


carol with Milka she will beat it ,it was a mistake in the reading of her pee so meds where stopped to soon..but on the bright side you went in to have it re checked  very smart!
have they ever checked the white blood count (CBC) we really depended on those readings for Wilson (within normal not fighting anything ) the numbers where so high in the beginning but slowly came to normal 
could maybe use this as another way to monitor things?

eve it has to be so very frustrating for you guys it has been so long.... but you guys are GRAET!!
The time will come when Marge is free of blasto I wish I knew why hers has taken so long (she is a big girl though and very pretty at that)

remember ...
Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible. -- Anonymous


(THANKS>>I am so happy for Wilson also)
Kristin
(Darla never made it here the rescue kept her because I could not meet at the time they had transport I need a few more hours so the search is still on for a new member to the family)

[carolh]

Thanks Kristin, Jeanie and Eva,

Yes, we go on.  No, we haven't been monitoring white blood cell counts except once when she was three months into her first round of treatments (vet said he wished all his dogs had such great test results!  Strange darned disease!).  Kristin, so sorry re Darla.  Good to know.  I think it is probable we'll be getting an Aussie into our shelter in the next week.  I'm away for the next week plus a few days but I'll definitely keep my eyes open for you.  No one would take better care!  If you came up here to get an Aussie, it would be so much fun to meet you, Wilson and crew. 

Jeanie, you have given Hot Dog a new life.  So tragic that blasto hit but no matter what happens, Hot Dog has the joy of finding you.  We took in an abused junk yard dog, age 10.  He only lived two years but they were great two years and we hold on to those memories!  My forever on top of my heart dog Bella was with us for eight years after enduring a year of horrible abuse.  She dealt with eight bouts of cancer but by golly, she had a wonderful eight years with us.  Your TN area sounds gorgeous.  Rats that it yields blasto.  I lived in Athens for a year when I was a youngster and will always remember the beauty of your state.

Eva,  I love the gift of St. Bernard drool!  You're going to be my model as we plunge on into this.  Is the holistic vet advice helping?
Carol

[Kash-]

Carol,

I'm sure it's posted in some thread or another, but I'm too lazy to go and look.  How long was Mika on antifungal's the first time around?

Back in 2001 there wasn't Mira vista and we just had Knight on Itra for what seemed like forever.  In reality it was probably 7.5 or 8 months.  by the time we ran the course, it seemed like "What we just quit giving the pill and hope it's gone?"

My vet was always vigilant for the blasto return.  In later life Knight's ankle swelled up due to arthritis, My vet did a biopsy anyway, despite it being 6 years after the fact.  I don't have as much experience with blasto as many of those here do, but it makes me wonder if anyone ever is really done with it.  I forget the exact numbers, but I do remember reading that (I think) most male dogs do relapse at some point.  That's frightening.

[evayola]

Marge's holistic vet has been AMAZING! The powders that Marge is on have helped her immensly not to mention the diet change. Marge has a new pep in her step and no longer is trying to hide in cold areas to cool her body down. The vet says blasto dogs have inner damp heat which is like an interior fever that we couldnt feel so that is why she was always seeking cold places. It makes so much sense now because of they way that she would act in the summer. She wouldnt even go outside sometimes and would just go to the bathroom in the house because of it. If you need anything please ask. It sucks so bad that we have to go through this again. Marge goes in to the vet tomorrow for her 3 mo checkup on meds and to re xray the bone. I will let you all know how it goes.

Eva

[carolh]

Thanks again for all the support.

Mika was on the itra for 6 months, then I agonized with you all while I went another month but on flu, and chickened out taking her off it so she actually went almost another month on the flucon.  I decided to go back to the itra since that took her count down before.  This whole disease just sucks.  But she is doing well and she knows, and we know, our commitment to her is endless.  That counts for so much.
Eva, can your holistic vet give us a reading in one visit or does it take lots of visits?  I'm thinking if Mika doesn't make progress, I might want to drive her down there to visit your holistic vet.  She seems to have the opposite problem re the cold.  She never used to get cold even in extreme cold weather and even though she is short-haired with what seems to me to be a puny coat (compared to the lush, ever shedding coat of Hale Bopp).  Now, though, she shows she gets cold on our walks and doesn't mind curling up in a blanket when we get home.  Before if we tried to cover her, she would stay for about 30 seconds, then crawl out and rest away from it.  Now I'll cover her at night and she'll still be in it by morning.
Again, you all are wonderful and Eva, your great news re Marge has me grinning from ear to ear.
Carol