Rapamycin for my Cats?

[Beth]

So stressful and hugs to your cat. Thank you for sharing your experience.

My cats have been on rapa since jan and they became noticeably perkier.

Since then, just a couple months ago, we added the aminavast supplement I previously mentioned (only one pill a day dumped into their food) and I switched their phosphorus binder to Catney, from aluminum hydroxide (one cat seems to have more of an appetite on it). One had already been on Porus One for over a year, in addition to them both getting daily sub q fluids.

I can’t begin to tell you which things are doing the heavy lifting, but at 17 and 18 years old with advanced CKD, they are both aging backwards. I kept thinking they were near the end, but nope, not anymore.

Back to you.

My 17 year old was diagnosed with mast cell almost two years ago and she was put on immunotherapy. She does really well on it. As instructed, I also give her an anti acid with it. Earlier this year we switched to imatinib immunotherapy and it’s working even better for her.

I googled and it appears imatinib is something that can possibly help SCC. The nice thing is, unlike more aggressive treatments, this does not alter the quality of her life one bit. She is healthier now than she was two years ago. Heck, she is even healthier than she was two months ago! It’s very noticeable based on how much she travels throughout the house.

(They are also getting solensia and Adequan injections).

Did your vet discuss immunotherapy with you? My cat has an oncologist but she has told me (as everyone does) that my IM vet is so good, just have her manage her treatment. I wouldn’t think traditional vets would have that much personal experience with prescribing immunotherapy. Their other vet just sent me to the oncologist.

As I’ve mentioned, but I’ll put it out there again, if you don’t have anyone to discuss this with, my vet does remote consults and you can have a phone or zoom visit. She is also very familiar with sglt2 and rapamycin. She did not want me to give my cats sglt2 due to losing weight and dehydration (we previously discussed this and your cat is at a different place, but I mention this for the benefit of others who might have cats with more advanced ckd where hydration and weight loss is already a challenge)

And ditto on the guilt… I lost my favorite cat last august and I only wished I had put him on rapa that might have made his last few months a little better. I was still fairly new to it and was not comfortable enough to give it to my old cat with so many comorbities. Woulda coulda shoulda

[desertshores]

"Imiquimod (Imiquad) cream is FDA-approved for treating human skin cancers, such as basal cell carcinoma and actinic keratosis. While it has shown effectiveness in humans, its use in animals, including cats, is less well-documented and may not be officially approved.

Some veterinary dermatologists may use it off-label for certain skin conditions in animals, such as squamous cell carcinoma in cats, but its safety and efficacy for these uses would be determined on a case-by-case basis by a veterinarian. Cats can be sensitive to certain medications, and imiquimod might cause side effects such as skin irritation, redness, or inflammation.

If you’re considering using Imiquad for a cat, it’s crucial to consult with a veterinarian who can assess the specific case and provide the appropriate guidance."

“Imiquimod might cause side effects such as skin irritation, redness, or inflammation.”
Of course, all topical treatments of skin cancer have this effect.

You may want to search for a veterinarian who specializes in skin diseases and/or oncology.

Imiquimod (Imiquad) cream is expensive, but I have some on hand just in case.

[CronosTempi]

@Beth

My 17 year old was diagnosed with mast cell almost two years ago and she was put on immunotherapy. She does really well on it. As instructed, I also give her an anti acid with it. Earlier this year we switched to imatinib immunotherapy and it’s working even better for her.

I googled and it appears imatinib is something that can possibly help SCC. The nice thing is, unlike more aggressive treatments, this does not alter the quality of her life one bit. She is healthier now than she was two years ago. Heck, she is even healthier than she was two months ago! It’s very noticeable based on how much she travels throughout the house.

(They are also getting solensia and Adequan injections).

Did your vet discuss immunotherapy with you? My cat has an oncologist but she has told me (as everyone does) that my IM vet is so good, just have her manage her treatment. I wouldn’t think traditional vets would have that much personal experience with prescribing immunotherapy. Their other vet just sent me to the oncologist.

Thank you. Our vet didn’t think that immunotherapy was indicated for the SCC our cat has, but we didn’t discuss imatinib. At this point it’s watch and wait. If it starts going downhill again, it’ll be time to look for more drastic measures, maybe imatinib in addition to escalating rapa dosage.

If the weight loss doesn’t stop, I’ll have to stop the dapagliflozin, because below a certain point, weight loss becomes dangerous to cats, especially the liver. Fortunately right now his results from today show stellar values for the liver (in fact improved). Atm. I am cutting back dapa to 3 times a week, but if that doesn’t work, I’ll stop dapa and look into other means of protecting the kidneys.