Is this cancer?

Status
Not open for further replies.

Peeps

Member
I am back with concerns with Bubs again. She is lethargic and very slow moving along with not eating her greens. However she is still eating crickets and worms normally. She is staying on the cool side of her tank and sleeping for most of the day. She did this to me last year as well and turned out she was burmating so I was going bck and forth whether to get bloodwork done or not. I decided yes and got her bloodwork rechecked because of her previous one indicating she had an endocrine tumor due to extremely high glucose levels. Once again her glucose is sky high however is it about 200 lower than previously. 1,043 is what it is reading but all her other levels are normal. I am nervous because to figure out if she really does have a tumor I need extensive testing like CT scans and MRI's however I cannot afford that. I have done ultrasounds, xrays and bloodwork and still no definitive answer. She is pooping when I give her baths and they appear to be normal looking. Her fecal was negative which was just done recently as well. I will attach a photo of her bloodwork results and maybe you can give me some input. It did take them a few stabs to get the blood so I'm sure she was fairly stressed out however I don't feel like this would cause that much of an increase in her glucose. Her fat pads are still normal and her weight is around 610g when I last checked it a week ago so she is still large and doesn't appear to be losing weight though I will continue monitoring it. She has dark coloring when she is in her tank but no obvious black beard and she returns to normal color when I take her out. She is also still having the spasms in her abdominal area and it seems like it may have gotten worse or stayed the same, she gets pretty bad edema in her neck/beard but it goes away after awhile. I am at a complete loss as to what this could be. Is this definitely cancer because of the extremely high glucose? The glucose last time was at 1200 so it has gone down but she is still very hyperglycemic. The little muscle twitches also happen on her legs, tail and chest.

87949-2080775895.jpg
87949-5267490027.jpg


This is her (taken today)
87949-213951725.jpg
87949-4109488172.jpg
 

CooperDragon

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
The extremely high glucose levels tend to indicate neuroendocrine gastrinoma as you said. I don’t know if that is conclusive or not, but it can be an indicator. She looks pretty happy in the photo and it’s good she is maintaining weight. It may be worth trying some dietary treatments (consult with your vet about this). Perhaps a diet with specific types of veges or cutting protein would help. The lethargic behavior combined with steady weight may be coincidence and be brumation alongside something else(or nothing at all).
 

Drache613

BD.org Sicko
Staff member
Moderator
Hello,

Thanks for sending those to my email too, she is such a pretty girl.
I hope that she doesn't have cancer. There sure have been a lot of dragons lately, with high
glucose levels like that. The rest of the blood values like the uric acid & AST look fine right
now. The calcium & phosphorus levels are ok, but the calcium levels are a bit higher than
normal.
I am glad her weight is stable right now. Are you following a low fat diet for her?

Tracie
 

Peeps

Member
Original Poster
I am trying, she wont eat anything except crickets and worms so I’m not really sure what to do, do i force feed other things? I’m torn between what to do, at this point I feel like its palliative care most likely. There is just no way that she doesn’t have cancer with those levels and theres no way for me to get a definitive diagnosis.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Members online

No members online now.

Latest resources

Latest posts

Latest profile posts

I miss you so much, Amaris 💔
What is a quick way to warm up a cold beardie? His heating element went out overnight and now he's very cold.
Pearl Girl wrote on moorelori1966's profile.
i feel so sad reading your about me 😢
Clapton is acclimating okay I think. He's quick as lightning so I'm not sure how much I should bring him out of his house yet. He's not at all interested in his salad though. I wonder if I should change what I'm giving him. Least he's eating his crickets.

Things to do:
Buy calcium powder
Material to raise surface for basking spot
Scenery decals for back of tank

Forum statistics

Threads
155,898
Messages
1,255,672
Members
75,965
Latest member
williamyoung
Top Bottom