Squamous cell carcinoma

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Purplestart

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Hi Im new to this group.. Has anyone had any experience with Optical Squamous cell carcinoma? My 21 year old tb has developed one, it got removed off his eye 4 days ago but his eye.. His eye is still discharging yellow muck and is quite red and inflamed around the eye, i have also noticed his other eye in the corner were the third eye lid sits is now hollow and you could get your finger in the space, he also has developed a lump on the inside of his upper lip and also lose a considerable amount of weight in a short time! Im concerned just with the muck being discreated as could that mean its possibly spread to other areas? My vet wants to do more surgery and fully sedate him this time to scapel the eye to get rid of any more residue left there but im worried putting hin through that again if it has allready spread! He has also been diagnosed with a heart murmur and leaky valve, n im scared of putting him out because he might not wake up.. I would post a photo but I cant see how! Thanks heaps
 
My mare had this op. She was home 2 or 3 days later, with a tube still into her eye (through the eyelid) that I had to irrigate her eye through (the other end was plaited into the mane, and I used a syringe). I think that went on for a further 2 weeks.

It then had staples taken out of the corner of the eye as the root had grown into the tearduct, and the tube removed, and she still had some cream for the eye after that.

TBH I would be worried, as although she had tubes, staples, cream, antibiotics and box rest with walk in hand, her eye always looked fantastic.

It healed up so you could hardly tell, other than the eye did stay liable to be weepy with clear liquid because when the tear duct was shortened it left the eye corner misshapen, but it was simply an escape of normal excess tears, that just leaked as the 'dam' in the eye was too low. You would have to have known to know though, as it really was very minor, just the trace of a tear now and again.

I would go with whatever your vet says TBH. I know it is risky with an oldie, but eyes are important to get right! If it is infected then this must be put right ASAP, and if it were me and the cancer had spread, I am afraid that , for me, they horse would not be woken up on the table. That is a personal decision though, and my mare had the same stipulation, that if the cancer had spread so it could not be removed she would not be woken up. I hope it is a minor infection, and will be right as rain soon.

BTW, mine was a full GA, big operation, first time. He removed more than probably strictly necessary, but it was all good, no recurrence.
 
I had one pts last Nov as I wouldn't put him at 24 through full on surgery, my vet was in full agreement with my decision as it was very fast growing and he would have struggled to cope with one eye which was a highly likely end result, you know your own horse, are you doing this for him, you or the vet?
I would be unwilling to put an older horse with heart issues through surgery unless there was an excellent prognosis and he could lead a totally normal life afterwards, it is quality that counts not quantity, discuss all possibilities with your vet so you can make a fully informed choice based on quality of life and the prognosis, a successful outcome is not based on how the horse is in 5 years time but on whether it survives the surgery or not.

Good luck with him, I remember how much pain my old boy was in and know I made the right decision for him xxx
 
Hi n thankyou for your advice.. Im trying to base my decision on his quality of life, id hate to put him to sleep if it is fixable but on the other hand I do suspect its traveled further. My vet is unsure & will not say if its traveled further, in 2 weeks it went from being on the membrane on the outer eye to attaching itself to the eyeball which now requires full sedation to scrape off! Im very worried with his age his heart issue and the fact its spread that the surgery is not only going to be dangerous but its going to do nothing & im putting him through pain he doesnt need.

I feel that if it was just the lump and it hadnt spread then why is his eye still weeping yellow gunk (every morning n afternoon its quite messy around his eye). There is a vet nurse here were my horse is that works in surgey and is responsible for momitoring the horse and she even said even healthy horses are a concern under sedation!

I want to do whats right by him, im pumping food into him to see if he can gain weight or if its the cancer thats causing the weightloss.. But thats unsistanable as im on limited funds! I feel now the best things is to give him a good quality of life with the time he has left & if he loses more condition, goes off food or that eye gets bad and growns again which my vet said it will then I think that will be time to put him to sleep. Ive had him for 16 years and my daughter grew up with him, hes been retired for a while n hes just like our big dog now, just cant bring him inside lol.. Makes this decision so hard!
 
My vet didnt do a full GA as she was concerned given his current condition with his weightloss that he may not have made it through & she couldn't resuscitate him if that happened as she didn't have the equipment.. Although I wouldnt want him resuscitated though as id hate to have to get him moved if he was gone back home to be buried.

Alot of my decision is being based on the fact she not keen to do a GA and wants me to send him to a specialist that can resuscitate him if needed.
 
Having read your later posts I think if your vet is concerned about him getting through the op and can not really offer a definitive answer to how far gone he may be in developing further tumours, he has been suffering from weightloss which may be related to his eye condition, even if it is not he will be likely to drop even more following the GA and recovery, that you are on a budget, your own situation has to be considered in the decision making, then you need to go with your gut instincts however tough it is.
He has had a great life with you and your daughter don't put him through surgery to satisfy your vet, call it a day when you think the time is right before you get in deeper financially, emotionally you are already fully involved it really will be no easier to put him through surgery just to possibly give him an extra month or two of what may be an uncomfortable life.

If you want to have a proper chat send me a pm and I will give you my number so you can call me at any time, or try friends at the end who offer a service to help people going through losing their horses including being there in person if required.
 
My mare had this OP at AHT. She was there a few days and I had ointment to put in her eyes afterwards. She had her third eyelids removed. All was OK afterwards and no after effects.

However your case is different and I suspect you already know what to do. You have to think of your horse first. It is never easy x
 
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