Thanks for all the good wishes for Willow. ❤

[ShazzieB]

I'm sorry I didn't thank each of you individually at the time. Please accept my apologies and consider yourselves all thanked now, from the bottom of my heart.

We got the news from the vet yesterday, and it isn't good. The tumors are malignant. She needs additional tests plus surgery that will add up to several thousand dollars. My husband is freaking out about the cost, but I've decided I don't care. I am going to raid my 401K to pay for it.

Most cats that develop these kinds of mammary tumors are much older than Willow and usually either unspayed or didn't get spayed until an advanced age. Willow is 8 years old, tops, and was spayed by the time she was two. So she was not at all a likely candidate for this. But you know how life is - shit happens, and it doesn't pay any attention to statistics.

There are still a lot of unanswered questions right now. The next step will be to take her in for x-rays and an abdominal ultrasound to check for any metastasis. That will give us a better idea of her long term chances.

Then she'll have the surgery and the stuff they remove will be analyzed in the lab to determine the type of cancer and the stage. Best case scenario would be no metastasis, the surgery gets it all, and she gets a few more years to enjoy life. That's what I'm hoping for.

I'm sitting on my bed typing this right now, and Willow is curled up next to me sleeping peacefully, completely oblivious to what's going on. Looking at her, it's hard to accept the fact that her little furry body has been invaded by a deadly disease. The whole thing seems surreal.

I guess that's it for now. I'll keep you all posted on everything that happens, step by step. Thanks so much for being here and rooting for us. It helps a lot just to be able to come here and talk about it. This group is the best!