When Murphy had been diagnosed, he actually had been limping for a couple of months.  He was initially misdiagnosed  We went ahead with the biopsy because we were told that there was a possibility of it being an infection, so grasping at straws....  The biopsy came back inconclusive, which is not uncommon.  We did go ahead with surgery because follow up x-rays showed that the tumor they saw was getting bigger and eating away at the bone.  It was just a matter of time before the bone would break.  If your vet is sure it's cancer, I would skip the  biopsy.  It often comes back inconclusive and is a painful procedure.  It also postpones surgery.  They can always biopsy the leg after surgery to find out exactly what type of cancer it is, especially if you plan on going forward with chemo.  Once we saw the x-rays, we didn't hesitate about surgery.  Murphy was 7 years old and perfectly healthy.  We felt that we owed it to him to give him the best opportunity to live his life pain-free.  We weren't ready to say good-bye to him. 

Donna

You've found the right place to help you feel less lost! I was like you, took my 9.5 year old guy to the vet with a limp and came out with a possible diagnosis of osteosarcoma. I'm also single, with no kids. My fur family is the only family I have locally. Clyde's tentative diagnosis happened the Friday before Memorial Day weekend. My vet did suggest a blood test to determine whether it was a fungal infection, and said if it wasn't, next step was a bone biopsy. After a complete meltdown over that long weekend and all of the research I could do (including here) by the time Tuesday rolled around, I had made up my mind. When the fungal infection test was negative, after another night's sleep on it, I told the vet I wanted to skip the biopsy and go directly to amputation. He agreed, and Clyde had surgery that Friday.

Once I made that decision I felt so much better!! If you read here, you will see how well most of them do. Some have a little trouble during recovery, but all of them ultimately adapt I think. My guy sure did. By amputating the leg, you will take away the pain. For me, that was the most important thing. I won't lie - I still struggle with the diagnosis and cry all the time. But Clyde the dog is happily hopping around on his three legs, enjoying every minute of every day. And of course he's being terribly spoiled.

For what its worth, I also really struggled with the "is it worth it" thought. For me, since I knew chemo wasn't an option for me financially, I wasn't sure whether I should put him through an amputation if its not really buying him any time. What made me decide was the risk of fracture plus not wanting him to be in pain, plus simply not being ready to say goodbye. He was and is so full of life, it just didn't feel right to end it when there was something I could do that would at least keep him pain free.

I am giving him K-9 immunity - I have no idea at all whether its helping anything, but it certainly isn't hurting and he really likes them. Like others will tell you, Juno doesn't know she has cancer. She just knows her leg hurts. Once that's gone, she will go about learning to be a Tripawd, and will live in the moment like they do. Keep in touch here, you will learn so much and it is so wonderful to have a community of people who are going through the same thing that you are.

I can completely relate to your rush of emotions, heart ache and total despair. But..... it really is something you can deal with and get your head around. I was absolutely crushed by Zuki's diagnosis 3 mnths ago. We went with the biopsy after 2 weeks of limping, but had I found this site before and been better educated I honestly wouldn't have done the biopsy either. Inconclusive results.... when you're told Osteosarcoma is aggressive and needs dealing with quickly and then you sit and wait for biopsy results for 10 days while helping your pooch heal from the anaesthetic and the painful procedure, to be told inconclusive! I found it incredibly frustrating and confusing. However we did opt for amputation and chemo and so far I wouldn't have done anything differently. Zuki is back doing a 100% of the things he did on 4 legs just his walks are shorter. Instead of having an hr in the woods or the meadows or on the beach we just have 15mins. He still swims with his fur sister, steals her toys, digs in the sand and definitely still harasses to mailman. It was a rough 2 weeks of healing after the operation - be prepared and you will be fine though.

I tracked his progress if you would find reading/seeing his pics helpful - http://zuki.tripawds.com/

Good luck, stay positive - Juno will feed off your strength and PMA

XXX