The Final Report is in

THE FINAL PATHOLOGY REPORT for Noodle has been returned -- I'll begin with saying that just prior to the surgery to amputate his leg, an oncologist looked at Noodle's x-rays and suggested that the cancer may be in his knee joint, and was not osteosarcoma (bone cancer) like we had thought. This gave us something to hope for. 

And those hopes were raised when the preliminary biopsy report made no mention of bone cancer, but  instead, mentioned synovial cell sarcoma -- I'd never heard of it, so I looked it up. 

**Synovial cell sarcoma, also known as joint cancer, is a soft tissue cancer that affects a dog's joints. The best treatment for synovial cell sarcoma in dogs is amputation of the affected limb. The surgery must be wide and deep to remove all of the tumor tissue, and a large margin of healthy tissue should be removed around the visible mass. In some cases, amputation may be the only way to be curative.

With that, all we could do was wait for the final report. And the final report confirmed what we were all hoping for, that Noodle's cancer was confined to his knee joint - With clear and extended margins from the amputation with no signs that it metastasized, and no signs of osteosarcoma, we are confident that Noodle's surgery has been curative. 

It was truly the best news. I cannot express the relief and gratitude I am feeling - That feeling of gratitude also extends to the rescue for their deciding to do the amputation surgery when we were so unsure of what the outcome would be. It has, without a doubt, given Noodle a bright future. 

What I've Learned from Noodle

We are now 2 weeks and 3 days post surgery for Noodle. It's unfortunate that we cannot say his recovery has been uneventful, because it has not been. I'll be honest, it has been exhausting and stressful, at least for his caretakers. I've never cared for a dog that had an amputation, so I wasn't sure what to expect or exactly what to do. But I quickly learned and found out. 

Here's what I have learned.

       ⚫ That a lot of draining, even from a small area of a surgery site is a reason to take off work and be at the vet's office when they open. A culture was done, and Noodle was put on an antibiotic (Baytril) which knocked out the infection. The stitches were removed this past Tuesday, and everything has healed as it should. 

        ⚫ I've learned that keeping that IV pole from about 10 years ago was a good thing to do because we needed it for the bag of IV fluids we used to flush/clean the infected area of Noodle's surgery site. 

       ⚫ That having a lot of extra dog towels for a wound that's draining is a good thing, even if they take up a lot of room. 

       ⚫ I have been reminded during Noodle's initial recovery that a perk of working in a dental office is that you can order sleeves of gauze at a fraction the cost, and the doctor lets you just take a box of gloves to have at home. 

       ⚫ The value of taking a strength training class has paid off - Lifting Noodle to get him outside and inside has been made easier because of them - At least I think they have.  

         ⚫ The big new comfy bed that we just got has been perfect for Noodle to sleep and recover on, and is easy for him to get onto and off of - He loves it and Ree agrees!! (Thank you Jean!) 

        ⚫ I've learned that getting a prescription for codeine for a dog is practically impossible in my county in Virginia. Most pharmacies don't carry it. It cannot be called or faxed in, it has to be a handwritten prescription. And one pharmacist wouldn't even consider filling the prescription at all because the written prescription had no last name on it for Noodle -- Even though I pointed out Noodle is a dog. It was very frustrating! But I will add that Noodle did just fine without the codeine. We simply increased the amount of gabapentin he is given. 

        ⚫ Through all of this, I've also learned what a sweet boy Noodle is. He has been so good during his recovery. He has never once objected when I was cleaning the infected area of his surgery site that I know was achy and tender. 

Finally, with the ups and downs, as worn out as I was, without a doubt, it has been totally worth it! Noodle is getting stronger every day. He has learned how to re-balance himself which makes him much steadier on his feet. I know Noodle is feeling better too. And now we wait for the final pathology report that should come in a few days, which will tell us what the next step in Noodle's journey will be.