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Mommy Jan · 05-29-2010, 08:24 AM

Help! My precious little guy was diagnosed with PLE on April 27, after weeks of on and off vomiting/diarrhea, trembling and a rounded belly. Our regular vet referred us to an Oncology/Internal Medicine Specialist. On our first visit she did blood work which showed extremely low protein levels, and immediately stated he had PLE. She was able to drain much of the liquid from his tummy and started him on Prednisone 5mg 2x daily. After one week we returned for more blood work, his counts were still too low so we continued the Prednisone. After two weeks we returned only to learn his levels still hadn't shown any improvement, so we increased the dosage to 1 1/2 2x daily. We returned this week only to find his levels hadn't increased at all. She felt that the Prednisone wasn't working and the next thing to try was the chemo drug Vincristine.....I consented because I just wanted my little guy to get better. How I wish I never would have allowed this treatment. I should tell you that he had been acting well, interested in life, being part of the family and no vomiting or other symptoms during the Prednisone therapy. Within hours of receiving .1 mg of Vincristine he began to vomit, explosive diarrhea and lost all interest in everything, including eating. We contacted the vet and she had us bring him in, his temp was 103, she did a CBC and his blood work was fairly normal. At this point she felt she had done all she could do for him and that he was just not going to get better, that he would be one of the 15% of Yorkies that do not respond to Prednisone therapy and would succumb to the disease. I refuse to believe that. Yesterday we contacted the vet and told her he was lethargic, but would still drink water, go outside and pee. She agreed to allow us to force feed him, Hills A/D and see if he would improve. He vomited a tiny bit the first 2 times after eating, but today has kept it down. I am encouraged by this small achievement and am hopeful that each day his strength will return to somewhat normal and he'll be able to enjoy whatever time he has left.

I'm sharing this long story to see if anyone else has had experience with this disease and treatment and how your baby did.

Thank you for allowing me to talk and share the heart wrenching experience.

05-29-2010, 08:24 AM	#1
Mommy Jan YorkieTalk Newbie! Join Date: May 2010 Location: Apollo Beach FL Posts: 7	My Yorkie was diagnosed with PLE Help! My precious little guy was diagnosed with PLE on April 27, after weeks of on and off vomiting/diarrhea, trembling and a rounded belly. Our regular vet referred us to an Oncology/Internal Medicine Specialist. On our first visit she did blood work which showed extremely low protein levels, and immediately stated he had PLE. She was able to drain much of the liquid from his tummy and started him on Prednisone 5mg 2x daily. After one week we returned for more blood work, his counts were still too low so we continued the Prednisone. After two weeks we returned only to learn his levels still hadn't shown any improvement, so we increased the dosage to 1 1/2 2x daily. We returned this week only to find his levels hadn't increased at all. She felt that the Prednisone wasn't working and the next thing to try was the chemo drug Vincristine.....I consented because I just wanted my little guy to get better. How I wish I never would have allowed this treatment. I should tell you that he had been acting well, interested in life, being part of the family and no vomiting or other symptoms during the Prednisone therapy. Within hours of receiving .1 mg of Vincristine he began to vomit, explosive diarrhea and lost all interest in everything, including eating. We contacted the vet and she had us bring him in, his temp was 103, she did a CBC and his blood work was fairly normal. At this point she felt she had done all she could do for him and that he was just not going to get better, that he would be one of the 15% of Yorkies that do not respond to Prednisone therapy and would succumb to the disease. I refuse to believe that. Yesterday we contacted the vet and told her he was lethargic, but would still drink water, go outside and pee. She agreed to allow us to force feed him, Hills A/D and see if he would improve. He vomited a tiny bit the first 2 times after eating, but today has kept it down. I am encouraged by this small achievement and am hopeful that each day his strength will return to somewhat normal and he'll be able to enjoy whatever time he has left. I'm sharing this long story to see if anyone else has had experience with this disease and treatment and how your baby did. Thank you for allowing me to talk and share the heart wrenching experience.