Possible Lymphoma in Cat

Question
I have a six year old cat which recently seemed to be depressed and losing weight.  After a couple of trips to the Vet (he had lost 2 pds but all blood, stool & urine tests were normal), an X-Ray was taken of his abdomen.  Something was there that the Vet had never seen before so another Vet in the Clinic reviewed the X-Ray and they feel it is a possible Lymphoma. The mass looked large to me on the X-Ray, but the Vet couldn't feel anything when she felt his abdomen.   He still seems depressed but he is eating soft foods and drinking some water.  I really don't want to put him through any more tests or surgery.  I guess what I am asking you is what should I expect in the coming weeks from him?  Everything I've read says this is fatal and I don't want him to suffer.  How will I know if he is suffering?  Right now he still follows me around and purrs, but he's not himself.

Answer
Hi Nanci.  I'm very sorry to hear this.  Lymphoma is no stranger to me.  If there's any disease I could cure, it would be cancer.

I'm not sure where in the abdomen the mass is.  The location may have a lot to do with how long he'll survive.  If it's in the intestines, it generally allows a longer survival time than if it's infiltrated the kidneys or liver, etc.  I've had two cats with gastrointestinal lymphoma.  

One survived about 3 months after symptoms surfaced.  As soon as we heard the news they'd found a mass, we opted to have exploratory surgery to confirm it was lymphoma and to try to remove the growth.  That proved to be the wrong decision - the vet could not stop him from bleeding on the operating table, and we had to put him to sleep while still under anesthesia.  

The other survived more than 9 months after symptoms arose, about 3 months after the tumor was finally found.

With those two, they continued to lose weight despite having a reasonable appetite.  Then serious diarrhea developed.  They slowed down and did a lot of resting.   Then they started vomiting from time to time.  In the second cat, serious appetite loss finally occurred as he entered stage V lymphoma, where the cancer had spread to his liver, pancreas, and other lymphnodes throughout the body.  This is the point at which I feel euthanasia is the kindest choice.  Cats are masters at hiding pain.  By the time they stop eating, you can be certain they are really feeling awful.  When you know you're dealing with a disease that only gets worse and never gets better, it's best to put the kitty to sleep as soon as he stops eating enough to nourish himself.

My vet told me that when you start wondering if it's time to put them to sleep, it's time.  It's better to put a kitty to sleep a day too soon than a day too late.  I can testify to that.  I had one cat with lymphoma surrounding his heart.  I put him to sleep once he stopped eating, but he was still full of energy.  And I felt guilty, as if I'd done it too soon.  Determined not to do the same thing again, I did not put his mother to sleep when she also ended up with lymphoma.  I scheduled an appointment, then cancelled it and rescheduled for a few days later.  When I got home on that day, she was dying, gasping for breath, crying out in agony.  THAT was the worst decision I've ever made in my life.  I would prefer to have put her to sleep a little early than make her suffer.

One thing I would highly recommend to you is that you put your kitty on Prednisone if your vet agrees to it.  It's a corticsteroid, similar to cortisone, used a chemotherapeutic agent that can be given as a pill at home.  It does not cause nausea, anemia or lethargy like other chemo treatments can.  It typically increases survival time by about 2 months in lymphoma patients, as it slows the growth of tumors.  In some cases, it may shrink the tumor slightly.  And it helps reduce inflammation that may occur in tissues surrounding the tumor.