lymphoma in cat

Question
Hi , Our 10 yr. old neutered male cat has been diagnosed with a lymphoma cancer near/on the small intestine. Chemo was recommended - but not with a good outcome [they said maybe 3 months]. It is the higher form of this cancer according to an aspiration biopsy . He is on Prednisone , and we decided not to put him thru chemo as it meant travelling over an hour each way to this vets , weekly chemo, and bloodwork, I have been trying Essiac tea, and apricot kernels ground up in his food , as others online swear this has helped their pets [both cats and dogs]. He sleeps, rests a lot [understandable-he's not well] .The issue is reoccuring diarhea , and vomiting . The vet prescibed flagyl , and a quarter tablet of Pepcid AC . Just wanting to know if there is more we can do. We really lve this little guy . His weightloss from 11 to 8 lbs. is also a big concern. Thank you , Rose T.

Answer
If you cat had small cell lymphoma, there is an additional oral drug you could be using at home called Leukeran. However, it sounds like he has large cell lymphoma which tends to be more aggressive. The vomiting could be from nausea and you may wish to consider talking to your vet about using an antiemetic. There are several newer drugs out there for this. One is Cerenia, recently released by Pfizer. It is not approved for use in cats but it has been used with success off label. Secondly, there is a human drug called mertazapine which is not only an antiemetic but it is an appetite stimulant.
Confirm with your vet that the Lymphoma is not of the small cell type before we completely abandon the idea of Leukeran.
Dr. G.