How much does a chest shunt cost for a cat with fluid in its chest?

Poor Bella! I'm so sorry to hear about her diagnosis. Unfortunately, it's true that mediastinal lymphoma with fluid in the chest generally has a very poor prognosis in cats. You could certainly request referral to a veterinary oncologist for a consultation about this - the oncologist could give you a much better idea of whether there are any treatment options at all that might help her. If you aren't able to pursue referral to a specialist, then I'm afraid it's very unlikely that there is much at all that can be done by your family veterinarian - this is quite a serious problem that generally does not respond well to treatment. There may be some things that could help to keep Bella comfortable for a short time, such as draining the fluid to help her breathing and starting her on a steroid such as prednisone, but it's unlikely that these things will help for long. Again, I'm very sorry for the bad news you've received - cancer is a terrible disease, in pets just as in people. :(

Oh dear! I'm sorry to hear that Bean is having this problem. Unfortunately, there is no way to diagnose what the mass is just by looking at it - he would need to have a biopsy or a fine needle aspirate (FNA) to get a sample of the tissue in the mass for analysis in order to get a specific diagnosis. In general, I can tell you that lymphoma is a common cause of a mass in this area in cats, but there's no way to know for sure if this is what Bean has without further work-up. For a mass or tumor in this area, I would normally recommend referral to a specialist for advanced imaging studies, biopsy or FNA, and discussion of treatment options. Your regular veterinarian should be able to help you set this up, if you wish.

Hi there and thanks for posting on Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! The costs for this will vary depending on what chemotherapy agents are used and length of treatment and response to treatment. Costs for these drugs can vary depending on what veterinary hospital you go to. Typically, for low grade (small cell) lymphoma, oral chemotherapy agents can be used. These can be expensive and may be over $100 a month. I hope this helps and thanks again for posting!

The most common cause of fluid in the lungs of older cats is cancer. Certainly other problems can cause it as well, but many of those problems would be ruled out with normal lab work. You can consider having the fluid drained as much as possible, and sometimes starting a diuretic such as lasix can decrease its formation, but neither of trise solve the problem. However, if you get fluid you may be able To get a diagnosis from the fluid. However, I do worry that it is likely a very guarded prognosis regardless of the cause. I’m so sorry Nibbs is so sick. Take care and thank you for using Pet Coach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This will depend on the clinic you go to and if it is done by a board certified surgeon or a general veterinarian. It could be anywhere from a few hundreds to a few thosounds. I would recommend that you check in specifically with the hospital you are planning to go for a more precise estimate. Best of luck!

I am so sorry your young cat is so ill. I would have to disagree here and recommend draining the fluid to relieve the pressure and help with your cats comfort. However, this is likely something we are not going to fix just by draining the fluid, it will only buy us a little more time. Unfortunately the image you attached isn’t loading so I am unable to view it. Please repost your question to the forum or request a one-on-one private consultation session with either myself or one of the experts here for a more In depth response about your pets specific medical concerns. If a diagnosis for your cat has not been made, then an abdominal ultrasound and chest rads should be done, if not already. We look forward to hearing back from you soon!

You could ask them if they work with a cardiologist. If she hasn’t yet had an echocardiogram (performed by a cardiologist) that will probably give you the best information. Don’t hestitate to respectfully and politely ask the vet in charge of her case for clarification if you don’t understand what’s going on with her. Sometimes we forget to discuss things in an understandable manner! I am sure your vet would be happy to clarify as best as possible. I’m sorry I don’t have more specific answers, but with complicated cases like hers I really can’t give you a whole lot without knowing the entire story. (Which can’t be done in 500 characters.