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Pebbles82 · 11-24-2021, 01:59 PM

It is very difficult. Yamper's lump looks just like the one our Syrian, Moo, had. He was a bit older than Yamper (about 2) and I decided against surgery and just to keep him comfortable on Metacam.

I had a lump removed from another Syrian recently - which was really small - when he was 21 months. In the hope it would remove cancer in time. But he did then develop what they thought were secondaries in his head/eye.

The tricky bit for you is his age. If he was two the decision would be easier. But at 17 months he is not that "old". On the other hand it is a large lump and it depends how attached it is.

My vet said Moo's lump was a mammary tumour, which is quite common. It didn't bother him that much getting about and I made the odd adjustment so it didn't rub on anything hard when he was out and about in his cage.

If you've already established it's a cancerous lump then the cancer may have spread.

But that is all uncertain. And maybe the vet feels it's the type of tumour that is enclosed. You have two options really.

1) Go ahead with the surgery and keep your fingers crossed that it's all removed and he lives out his life comfortably well into old age.
2) Cancel the surgery and keep him on Metacam until his quality of life deterioriates, and then he is likely to need to be helped on his way. How long that takes nobody knows. But I have seen some of these lumps grow enormous.

So my question would be - how good is the vet? Is it an exotic vet? They sound fairly confident about the surgery - did she mention if the lump is mobile in a sac or if it seemed attached internally?

Another option is to have a second opinion.

The risks - there is a slight risk a hamster may die under anaesthesia - but my view is - that is a risk worth taking as then they don't die of cancer and don't know much about it all.

The other risk is how extensive the surgery is and how much that takes out of them. Your vet wouldn't operate if your hamster wasn't healthy and in good condition.

It is a really hard decision. I also had a robo with a large lump underneath and decided not to have surgery - but then later wished I had as he remained active but was quite disabled by dragging the lump around. We got round that with a special set up in his cage, but he ended up having to be pts as the cancer took over.

Sorry I'm not being much help.

If you knew there were secondaries I think you would probably opt not to have surgery. But that is an unkown factor.

As he's only 17 months I think I would opt for the surgery. As that lump could get much bigger and then it's not possible to have surgery. But only if I was confident in the vet.

11-24-2021, 01:59 PM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: Hamster with cancer It is very difficult. Yamper's lump looks just like the one our Syrian, Moo, had. He was a bit older than Yamper (about 2) and I decided against surgery and just to keep him comfortable on Metacam. I had a lump removed from another Syrian recently - which was really small - when he was 21 months. In the hope it would remove cancer in time. But he did then develop what they thought were secondaries in his head/eye. The tricky bit for you is his age. If he was two the decision would be easier. But at 17 months he is not that "old". On the other hand it is a large lump and it depends how attached it is. My vet said Moo's lump was a mammary tumour, which is quite common. It didn't bother him that much getting about and I made the odd adjustment so it didn't rub on anything hard when he was out and about in his cage. If you've already established it's a cancerous lump then the cancer may have spread. But that is all uncertain. And maybe the vet feels it's the type of tumour that is enclosed. You have two options really. 1) Go ahead with the surgery and keep your fingers crossed that it's all removed and he lives out his life comfortably well into old age. 2) Cancel the surgery and keep him on Metacam until his quality of life deterioriates, and then he is likely to need to be helped on his way. How long that takes nobody knows. But I have seen some of these lumps grow enormous. So my question would be - how good is the vet? Is it an exotic vet? They sound fairly confident about the surgery - did she mention if the lump is mobile in a sac or if it seemed attached internally? Another option is to have a second opinion. The risks - there is a slight risk a hamster may die under anaesthesia - but my view is - that is a risk worth taking as then they don't die of cancer and don't know much about it all. The other risk is how extensive the surgery is and how much that takes out of them. Your vet wouldn't operate if your hamster wasn't healthy and in good condition. It is a really hard decision. I also had a robo with a large lump underneath and decided not to have surgery - but then later wished I had as he remained active but was quite disabled by dragging the lump around. We got round that with a special set up in his cage, but he ended up having to be pts as the cancer took over. Sorry I'm not being much help. If you knew there were secondaries I think you would probably opt not to have surgery. But that is an unkown factor. As he's only 17 months I think I would opt for the surgery. As that lump could get much bigger and then it's not possible to have surgery. But only if I was confident in the vet.