Elsa's radiation treatment for her brain tumor

As some of you may know, for the past 2+ years our beloved Boston Terrier, Elsa, has been experiencing health issues that we have been   tirelessly trying to resolve without much luck.

It all began with a sudden weight gain and extreme lethargy that quickly turned into a decreased appetite and extreme weight loss. We treated numerous things to no avail and it was a year of heartbreaking trial and error with our vet recommending euthanasia because it would be too difficult and costly to continue to figure out what was wrong. While he was right about the difficulty and cost, there was no way we were going to put Elsa down without a proper diagnosis. We moved states shortly after that conversation and hoped that seeing a new set of vets and specialists would help- it did not. As she has continued to deteriorate, we’ve continually checked in to ensure she is not suffering, and we are not making her hold on for our own selfish reasons. We’ve continually been told that she is fine. In our hearts we knew that wasn’t true, so we kept pushing for a diagnosis. As her mobility decreased, we were told to see the orthopedic surgeon. While I knew she wasn’t healthy enough for surgery I just wanted her to be seen by as many doctors as possible. At first look the surgeon knew this dog’s issue is not her knees there is obviously something else going on here. After a brief look through Elsa’s vast medical history, she said she read about pituitary adenomas in vet school, and they can present like this. The only way to know for sure was by doing a CT scan. We scheduled the scan, and the good news/ bad news is she was right. Elsa has a tumor in her brain. The relief we feel to finally have an answer is bittersweet, but we’ve been told these types of tumors respond well to radiation and Elsa can potentially have her life back, with many years to come. After meeting with the oncology specialists, we are optimistic about treatment results and Elsa has been put on the fast track to start shrinking this tumor.

 

Radiation will be Monday through Friday for four weeks after preliminary CT scans and MRIs are completed. Many of you have asked for ways to help beyond buying. t-shirts and gear from Terrier Cvlt, so we have started this campaign to make it easy for those who want to donate in addition to sending all the positivity Elsa's way. We love you guys for asking and we will keep you posted on Elsa's progress through this next chapter. We gotta keep that P.M.A.