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My cat has cancer. She hasn't eaten in 9 days, but ...
Sent to Cat Experts April 22 08:41 PM

My cat has cancer. She hasn't eaten in 9 days, but has had water.   My vet gave her a shot yesterday that usually gets her to eat, but it didn't work this time. She started bleeding from her nose today. What does that mean? She just wants to stay in the closet.

 

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April 22 9:05 PM (23 minutes and 59 seconds later)
         
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I'm sorry you and your kitty are having to go through this. It is so hard to watch the pets we love go through such an illness.

You did not say what type of cancer she has or where the tumor is.

If the cancer is in the mouth or the nasal cavities, the bleeding probably just means that the tumor has grown into a blood vessel and ruptured it and that is what is causing the bleeding.

If the cancer does not involve the face in any way, then the bleeding from the nose can indicate that she is developing problems with the clotting system of the blood, and that is a bad sign. There is a condition called disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC) that can occur as a complication of many serious diseases, including cancer, that is very serious. If it is DIC, you may see additional signs of bleeding in other places, like bruising of the skin (can be hard to see depending on the color of their hair coat) or bleeding from the gums of the mouth or in the urine or stool. It can be treated, but animals often do not survive.

There is, of course, a possibility that the bleeding nose is something much less serious, such as she hit her nose against something and started it bleeding, or she has a bad tooth infection that is extending up into the nasal passages.

If you want absolutely everything possible to be done to give this cat any and every chance for survival, I would suggest you seek out a specialist. I do not know if there are other thing that can be done--it will depend on the type of cancer present and how far advanced it is. If you think you want to pursue this, then I would take the kitty to an emergency vet this weekend, because if the bleeding nose is due to DIC, then promtp treatment is very important.

I hope this information helps you. Please let me know if there are other questions I can answer for you.

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