Rabbit lymphosarcoma

Question
Maggie, my 9 year old English Angora, has been diagnosed with lymphosarcoma - 2 tumors on her spleen.  The exotic vet experts in the area say to make her comfortable and it's just a matter of time before she dies.  Maggie's usual vet (not a rabbit expert) is willing to remove the spleen.  I have been syringe feeding her Oxbow Critical Care and giving her prescribed pain and nausea medicine.  A few days ago, I started giving her Essiac and she appears to be much better - eating on her own a little and more physically active.  Do you have any statistics on successful spleen removal for already-compromised rabbits? Maggie is my best friend and I want to do what's best for her.  My intuition tells me that she wouldn't survive this surgery.  Should I try the herbal route before taking the drastic surgical route?

Answer
I am sorry that she has cancer, but glad she is doing a bit better.  I have never heard of spleen removal in a rabbit.  You might check with a wider audience, such as Etherbun (http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/etherbun.html) or Petbunny (http://www.petbunny.net/petbunny/list/).  I can check with my vet, but I won't be seeing him til Thursday.

Certainly herbs are an option, there is a YahooGroup called HerbalRabbit you could join.  You could also check out resources at http://homepage.mac.com/mattocks/morfz/rabrefs.html#cancer

I would listen to your intuition, though.  If I get bad vibes about something, generally there is a reason for it.

So you could try herbs and homeopathy and use that time to explore other options that may be available.

There are many supportive things that can be done, but surgery may not be an option.

Kim