Not The News We Were Hoping To Hear

I'll just start this post by saying that if I begin to ramble and you feel lost, I won't be upset or offended if you just tune out.  I don't want to ramble, but my thoughts are pretty scattered.  I'm trying to make sense of all the information that's come at me.

Yesterday afternoon, I got the call with the pathology report from the vet for Blueberry.  Blueberry's lump was neurofibrosarcoma.  The margins were dirty, which basically means that they can't be sure that they got it all.  The vet says that usually this type of cancer doesn't spread, but it does tend to have tendrils that stretch out.  I feel like we've gotten mixed messages there.  On one hand, they said it's positive that there was only one blood vessel and that often the tumor never comes back and the dog is fine.  On the other, they say that her margins were dirty and there's a chance the lump could come back. 

So far, our options are vast.  First, we can do nothing and pray that the tumor never comes back, and possibly have to have it removed again.  Second, we can have surgery again and they can try to take enough from around the tumor site to try to get clean margins.  Third, we can go in and have x-rays done on her lungs and abdomen and have her lymph nodes aspirated.  Fourth, we can go to an oncologist, who will probably want option three done and can do radiation.  Fifth, my head could possibly explode and all the information could float out into the ether.

Blue has bounced back from the surgery last week remarkably well.  She doesn't seem to be bothered by any of this at all.  To me, she still seems very young, unlike Hawk, who was showing his age by the time he was eight years old.  She always wants to go and do what we're doing and hardly anything ever phases her.  Blueberry just stays calm through everything -- Lilac barking, tornados blowing through town, people coming home late, new dogs moving in -- she takes it all in stride.  So, I feel fairly confident that she will handle whatever we decide to do with her usual grace.  We just need to figure out what the plan will be.

If anybody reading has had experience with neurofibrosarcoma, we'd love to hear about it.  Heck, I hope that I managed to spell it right.  We are going to be researching our options and trying to get that money tree in the back yard to grow some fruit.  It will be a learning curve for us and hopefully we make the right call.  We have greatly appreciated everyone's support since we started on this journey.  It has helped more than I can say!  When we have more news on Miss Blue, we will share it.