Hamster Central - View Single Post - Melanoma on 21 month old Syrian

Pebbles82 · 05-14-2021, 09:52 AM

Hello. So sorry to hear this. I have not had a melanoma in a hamster (but am an ex nurse). I have had hamsters with tumours - they can grow quickly and when they get too large it's often too late to operate as it's such a large area of their body. Age is often a deciding factor.

Our Syrian currently has a pea sized lump and I am expecting the vet to suggest surgery and I will go ahead with that if she does. He is about 18 months - fit and healthy generally. And the lump is not too large (yet).

It is uncertain as to whether it will grow back or more aggressively and some of that depends upon if the cancer is already in the system or still localised. And also what type of tumour it is. If surgery went ahead, the tumour could be analysed which would give an idea of whether it was a type that is likely to have spread or not, internally.

I think 21 months is a difficult call. If he was over age 2 I would say - maybe let him live out his life (but he may end up having to be pts if and when he starts to suffer more as loxicom won't be enough to prevent the pain of cancer eventually). But he could live another year if treated.

I am sure it would mean removing his eye personally - they need to remove the area surrounding a tumour to ensure it is all gone. But from your photo it doesn't look like a huge area for surgery. It would be very sad if he lost an eye - but he can manage without it and may live a more pain free life and maybe die naturally.

It is a really tough decision. But I think I would probably go for the surgery to try and avoid suffering. I am wondering if there are any further tests your vet can do to establish whether the cancer has spread within the body. Maybe a scan would show if there were other tumours. If there are then surgery would maybe not help apart from local comfort in that area.

How long has he had this eye lesion?

05-14-2021, 09:52 AM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: Melanoma on 21 month old Syrian - Surgery? Yes or No? Hello. So sorry to hear this. I have not had a melanoma in a hamster (but am an ex nurse). I have had hamsters with tumours - they can grow quickly and when they get too large it's often too late to operate as it's such a large area of their body. Age is often a deciding factor. Our Syrian currently has a pea sized lump and I am expecting the vet to suggest surgery and I will go ahead with that if she does. He is about 18 months - fit and healthy generally. And the lump is not too large (yet). It is uncertain as to whether it will grow back or more aggressively and some of that depends upon if the cancer is already in the system or still localised. And also what type of tumour it is. If surgery went ahead, the tumour could be analysed which would give an idea of whether it was a type that is likely to have spread or not, internally. I think 21 months is a difficult call. If he was over age 2 I would say - maybe let him live out his life (but he may end up having to be pts if and when he starts to suffer more as loxicom won't be enough to prevent the pain of cancer eventually). But he could live another year if treated. I am sure it would mean removing his eye personally - they need to remove the area surrounding a tumour to ensure it is all gone. But from your photo it doesn't look like a huge area for surgery. It would be very sad if he lost an eye - but he can manage without it and may live a more pain free life and maybe die naturally. It is a really tough decision. But I think I would probably go for the surgery to try and avoid suffering. I am wondering if there are any further tests your vet can do to establish whether the cancer has spread within the body. Maybe a scan would show if there were other tumours. If there are then surgery would maybe not help apart from local comfort in that area. How long has he had this eye lesion? Last edited by Pebbles82; 05-14-2021 at 10:00 AM.