Guinea pigs, cancer, and surgery: Lola's very rough week

The humans went out of town for a week last week, and boarded us at the vet. Near the end of our visit, the vet noticed a bit of sludgy, pink-tinged urine (likely from blood) in the cage. As our readers know, I've been having a few issues lately, so their first thought is that it came from me. They examined me and found nothing that would explain the blood--although they did find I was due for another molar trim, had a weepy eye, and some nasal discharge, and prescribed some medicine for each condition. They then moved on to checking Lola, and noticed that she had a bloated belly.

Lola, is your belly bloated because you take so much of my food?

They took some x-rays of her, and noticed a large mass that was pushing on her other organs. The "primary concerns" on her discharge statement said:

1. "Abdominal Mass: Possible uterine cancer, bladder cancer, or other cancer
2. Lytic (moth-eaten) Pelvis: Possible bone cancer, bone infection, degenerative changes, other"

The humans then had to schedule surgery for Friday, where her life hung in the balance. There wouldn't be much they could do if it was advanced bladder cancer, but if it was uterine cancer, they thought they could remove her reproductive tract to bring it under control.

Lola before being dropped off at the vet for surgery. Good luck!

The humans got good news from the vet on Friday: Lola made it out of surgery okay. She's in observation until Monday, which is common after a guinea pig surgery. The cancer was in her uterus but unfortunately it also did spread to her bladder. The vet thinks if she makes it to Monday, she will probably live many more months pain free. Since the cancer was made worse by hormones, they fact that they spayed her will keep it from growing fast.

Poor Lola! I can't wait to get my cage-mate back tomorrow. It's been so lonely in the cage all by myself. I hope she's able to continue keeping me company for a long time!