Chris Swan's Weblog

Milo cancer diary part 18 – OK but delays

January 14, 2025 6:37 pm

Today brought another trip to North Downs Specialist Referrals (NDSR) for Epirubicin chemotherapy that comes at the end of this cycle of the CEOP protocol. One more cycle to go for this protocol.

Milo in his car basket with a compression bandage around where his latest chemo was administered.

No scan this time, that will wait for our next visit in (hopefully) eight weeks time. If things are looking OK then, Milo will be back on surveillance scans…

It hasn’t been entirely smooth running since my last post, as a we’ve had a couple of visits for chemo where things have had to be delayed due to low neutrophils. That’s a little bit of a worry, as normally when we get to this stage, and fortnightly visits, there’s been less of an issue with neutrophils after Vincristine. Talking to the oncologist it seems that this can (sadly) be the way of things… the immune system bounces back less quickly, and the cancer may also become more resistant to treatment.

Delays also lead to extra cost… More vet visits, more blood tests, Vincristine going out of date and new vials needing to be bought.

But… it’s almost two years since I started writing about Milo’s treatment, and back then I wasn’t sure if he’d see his 2nd birthday. So (vet visits aside), we’ve been able to enjoy two years of happy dog stuff together. Long may it continue.

Insurance

ManyPets have continued to turn claims around pretty promptly. Around 60% are getting settled in a day or so, which is excellent. Though those are usually the more straightforward (and less costly) ones. Others are clearly being reviewed more carefully, but even then the worst case has been a month.