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

Pebbles82 · 05-15-2021, 05:58 PM

It is hard. He will probably lose the sight of that eye anyway as the growth gets bigger and it could also be painful. Yes there is a risk he could die under the anaesthetic but many hamsters have ops and are fine.

It is easy to say for me as he's not my hamster. But it is weighing up the risks of pain and suffering with the risk of surgery that could relieve pain and suffering. If it was me I would go with the surgery. Knowing that there is a risk he may not survive the anaesthetic - but in that case, neither does he have to have long term suffering with cancer.

These growths are almost always cancer IMO. Even if it is benign to start with it can turn cancerous. And that is another reason to get it removed if it's benign.

Surgery can be a short thing and hamsters tend to recover quickly and get back to normal. if the wound does get infected he can have antibiotics.

I have never had a hamster have surgery before either but plenty of people on here have. If it can allow them to live out their lives without suffering from cancer I think it's worth doing. If it's left longer it could get very large and ulcerate (there are some really horrible weeping tumours around eyes) and even affect the brain and then he would have to be pts.

I am probably not helping but from where I am looking I think you need to get it removed and then take it from there. My vet said sometimes a lump does come back after being removed - but that may not be for some time and perhaps only if the other one had a bit left behind.

I had a robo with a few lumps and later regretted not having the surgery. By the time I had decided it was too late as they were too large and it would have affected too much of his body area. Then you have the hard decision of how long to let them keep going and when to have them pts.

To your hamster it will be no more stressful than any other vet visit - they won't know what's happened. But it gives them a chance of health for longer I think.

Our Syrians have all lived to about 2 years 8 months. That would be another year for your hammy. If the vet thinks it's cancer it probably is cancer.

I agree the unknowns are difficult. Not knowing if it has spread. But if he seems fine otherwise you can keep your fingers crossed that it has been caught early.

The other thing my vet said was - it doesn't really matter if it's benign or cancerous - a tumour is still toxic to their system (I cant remember how she explained that now).

05-15-2021, 05:58 PM
Pebbles82 Hamster Antics Join Date: Sep 2014 Posts: 23,533	Re: Melanoma on 21 month old Syrian - Surgery? Yes or No? It is hard. He will probably lose the sight of that eye anyway as the growth gets bigger and it could also be painful. Yes there is a risk he could die under the anaesthetic but many hamsters have ops and are fine. It is easy to say for me as he's not my hamster. But it is weighing up the risks of pain and suffering with the risk of surgery that could relieve pain and suffering. If it was me I would go with the surgery. Knowing that there is a risk he may not survive the anaesthetic - but in that case, neither does he have to have long term suffering with cancer. These growths are almost always cancer IMO. Even if it is benign to start with it can turn cancerous. And that is another reason to get it removed if it's benign. Surgery can be a short thing and hamsters tend to recover quickly and get back to normal. if the wound does get infected he can have antibiotics. I have never had a hamster have surgery before either but plenty of people on here have. If it can allow them to live out their lives without suffering from cancer I think it's worth doing. If it's left longer it could get very large and ulcerate (there are some really horrible weeping tumours around eyes) and even affect the brain and then he would have to be pts. I am probably not helping but from where I am looking I think you need to get it removed and then take it from there. My vet said sometimes a lump does come back after being removed - but that may not be for some time and perhaps only if the other one had a bit left behind. I had a robo with a few lumps and later regretted not having the surgery. By the time I had decided it was too late as they were too large and it would have affected too much of his body area. Then you have the hard decision of how long to let them keep going and when to have them pts. To your hamster it will be no more stressful than any other vet visit - they won't know what's happened. But it gives them a chance of health for longer I think. Our Syrians have all lived to about 2 years 8 months. That would be another year for your hammy. If the vet thinks it's cancer it probably is cancer. I agree the unknowns are difficult. Not knowing if it has spread. But if he seems fine otherwise you can keep your fingers crossed that it has been caught early. The other thing my vet said was - it doesn't really matter if it's benign or cancerous - a tumour is still toxic to their system (I cant remember how she explained that now). Last edited by Pebbles82; 05-15-2021 at 06:09 PM.