This past July, we noticed a lump had sprouted up almost overnight on Emmett's leg. We took him to the vet, and she told us that she would be surprised if it was anything other than a fat lump. Unfortunately, it came back as a soft tissue sarcoma, specifically a nerve sheath tumor. We met with an oncologist and two different surgeons. One surgeon recommended amputation because he said that there was no way to remove the tumor without leaving cancer cells behind. The other surgeon said that there was no way to tell if it had metastasized, so amputation was too drastic. His recommendation was to keep Emmett's leg, remove the tumor, and monitor both the site and his lungs for possible metastasis once a month for the next year. We went with the second guy. So far it's been three months since his surgery, and his leg is clear though he has a ton of scar tissue building up, and so far his lungs are clear.

Cancer is no longer a death sentence for dogs now that there are a lot of veterinary specialty centers nationwide. But the one tip I would give is don't let the disease dictate your relationship with your dog. The day I found out Emmett had cancer, I sobbed for hours. And poor Emmett knew something was wrong with me. And he wanted to fix it. So he wagged and snuggled and kissed and tried his best to cheer me up... when he's the one with the disease! So don't let the diagnosis interfere with the time you have together to play, nap, snuggle, or walk!