Hi There,

It's always difficult to make a decision regarding having surgery done on an older kitty. I am so sorry that you are facing this.

First, you have to consider the general health of the cat. Obviously having a heart problem would put your baby at a higher risk. It might be a good idea to have a complete blood panel done to determine how her other organs are functioning and also a urinalysis. Maybe even an ultrasound to take a closer look at her heart. An ultrasound can also be used to look for any other tumors. If there is more than one, it would probably be better to not have the surgery done.

How does your cat do in her every day life? Is she happy and still enjoying things like lying in the sun, playing and eating well? These are also things to consider. If she is doing well for her age then having the surgery done might be a good thing.

This is a decision that only you can make. My oldest cat, who is also 16 has feline asthma. In her case I would not put her under anesthesia because of the risk. I also have a 12 year old with kidney failure, but she is stable and doing well. I might consider surgery for her if it was minimally invasive. Anything major would be too hard for her to go through so I wouldn't have it done. I had an 18 year old with a large hernia and the vet advised doing nothing because of her age. So, every case is different.

Chances are that there is more than one lymph node affected by the cancer, or that there is another mass somewhere that has spread to the node. For this reason I would highly recommend further diagnostics, including whole-body x-rays before you make your decision. It would be rare for only the one lymph node to be affected.

Sometimes it's best just to make a cat comfortable. This usually involves using steroids and possibly pain meds.

I personally would reschedule the surgery in order to have more time to consider my options.

Please let us know what you decide.

Regards,
PHKitkat

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