Does prednisolone make cat skin cancer worse or grow faster?

I'm sorry to hear that Bugger has been diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma. Unfortunately, it is illegal for me (or any other vet on PetCoach) to make any specific dosage or medication recommendations for Bugger since I have not examined him in person. It's really important that you get Bugger established with a new vet for ongoing care, particularly since he has an ongoing chronic issue. He will need monitoring not only to track the progression of his SCC, but also to monitor his heart, liver and kidney function, and to be sure that he doesn't develop diabetes as a result of chronic steroid treatment. This article has more information about prednisone (prednisolone is equivalent, but in a form that is more bioavailable for cats): https://www.petcoach.co/pet-medication/prednisone/. I hope that everything goes well for Bugger!

Hello. At this point in time, there is no credible information concerning carcinogenicity and Vitamin B12. Long term studies in animals have just never been done. In any situation where you have co-morbidities, in this case IBD & skin cancer, you & your veterinarian have to decide if the risk of one possible problem outweighs the benefit it gives for the other problem. Since there is no credible information associating B12 with cancer growth, & it is controlling Bugger's intestinal symptoms, you must decide about continuing the supplement. Thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Dexamethasone is 7 times stronger than prednisolone and has an increased rate of GI upset or stomach ulcers. Typically on prednisolone is used in cat because prednisone is broken down to prednisolone--so it is easier to start with the broken down form already. Prednisolones are specifically used when talking about lymphoma due to the potential side effects of dexamethasone. Dr.s chooses one over the other base on preference or what you are treating -- specific diseases have research to back the use of one--lymphoma does better with prednisolone. You will not see a fast improvement with just prednisolone or even if you added stronger chemo. It is a slow progress no matter what. Just using prednisolone you can see a good appetite, no change in diarrhea, no added weight gain. It merely suppress the cancer cells temporarily and helps them feel better. Even with other chemos, it is long term process with slow results---2-4 months to see improvement with the diarrhea in severe cases. They stay on the medicine long term and the doses can be alternated based on how each patient responds

Given her age, steroid side effects from long term use tend to become less of a risk if the benefits are clearly improving her quality of life. Depending on the nature of the growth, low level chemotherapy medications may provide an opportunity to halt growth or even reduce the mass but this would require assessment by a specialist

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am sorry to hear Diesel isn’t feeling well. The prednisone is supposed to help slow the growth of the cancer but eventually it won’t be effective. Prednisone alone isn’t enough to cure him. If he is getting worse and the lymph nodes are growing it is likely the prednisone is no longer helping. I would discuss your options with the vet that diagnosed him but there isn’t much more they can do for him. I am so sorry and I hope the rest of his life is pain free. Good luck and kisses to Diesel!

Hello. I am so sorry for your worries with Bugger. While it is ultimately up to your veterinarian to decide if it is appropriate to administer the Covenia injection while he is on the Prednisolone, there are no real contraindications if this needs to be done. As long as Bugger is not on an immunosuppresive dose of Prednisolone, the Covenia should work just fine. I hope Bugger is feeling better soon & thanks for contacting Petco Pet Education Center.

I have never used it as a transdermal gel. Since it isn't commonly compounded in that way, I would think it doesn't work very well. You could ask your vet or call your compounding pharmacy to ask this question of a pharmacist, who should be able to give you a better answer!