Sarcoid Update - Sarcoid on Face is Horrible Now

The instructions from Xxterra is to use the product 4 days then rest for 10 days.  The instructions from the vet were use 4 to 6 days or until it starts to swell and turns into an open wound.  I decided to do it the way the vet said.

The one on her face we took the first pic on July 27th.  On Day 3 of treatment, July 30th,  you could see swelling.  Today, July 31st, 4th day of treatment - it is what I would call an open wound.  Did not treat it with the Xxterra.

Will continue to follow vet's directions to watch it and if it looks like the process has stopped will start re-applying it.

Will call vet tomorrow to get antibiotic for infection and butte for pain.

You can see the swelling in the one on her shoulder,  tomorrow will be the 7th day of treatment on it.  I hate to see what it is going to look like in the morning when I take off the bandage.

God, please let this work.  As of tonight I'm down to 1/2 the jar of Xxterra.  It looks like I will have to buy a 2nd bottle, another $100.  I don't want to have to stop treating it while I wait on it to be shipped.

Sarcoid Treatment Update 1 - Side Effects Have Started

Started treating the Sarcoid on her shoulder on July 25th.  I am doing the treatment in the evening and taking the photo the next day.  This is what it looked like after the 1st treatment with Xxterra.

Day 2 of treatment on July 26th. This is what it looked like after the treatment.

Day 3 of treatment on July 27th, Today (no photo till tommorrow).  Evidently today starts all the horror stories of the side effects.

Around 3 pm today Skyla went down.  She was not rolling but kept looking at her belly like when they get colic but it was only on the side where the Sarcoid is.  Got her up, listened for belly sounds, checked color of gums.  Belly sounds and gum color was okay.  Called the vet and told him about it, he said it was probably caused from the Xxterra.  Told me to give her 5 cc of Banomine, Butte for pain and to keep an eye on her.  She was up and walking around 15 minutes later.

We left to go do 2 parties and didn't get home till 9 pm.  Skyla was laying down and didn't even twitch an ear when we opened the gate.  We thought she was dead.  She stood up just as the truck pulled up to her and lifted her tail and it looked like the stream from a water hose.  She went right back down.  Her neck was very cold and she was trembling.  We put a blanket on her, put her in the barn.  Checked belly sounds and gum color.  It looked as if her stomach was bloated.  Called the vet.

Vet said to give her Butte and another shot of Banomine.  She got up and pooped again and it was like water shooting out of the water hose again.  Mixing apple juice and water to be sure she drinks and does not dehydrate.

You can tell just by looking in her eyes that she is in pain.  Nowhere in reviews I read from people using Xxterra or the vets or universities studies on it did it say a horse had died from using it.  Skyla just turned 2 last month and she is so sweet and I know she is probably the last baby I will raise and break, I can't stand the thought of losing her (that's why I'm sitting here doing this at 2:30 in the morning).

2:15 am, went to check on her, was laying down and doing a partial roll every now and then, gave her 5 cc of Banomine.  Offered her water and apple juice mixed and she refused it so i poured some in her mouth so I know she got some liquid in her.

Have a party in the morning in Tampa, going to worry myself sick about her.  Think I will leave Banomine in barn so I can call neighbor to go check on her and give her a shot if needed.   Everybody else is in bed.  If this was Lexi or Captain then Storm would be out there ever 15 minutes checking on them and yelling for me to come and make sure they were all right.  Since it's my baby it seems I'm the only one that cares if she is okay or not.

Everybody say a special prayer for me and Skyla.  Let her be okay in the end even if I have to take care of her constantly until we get the Sarcoids gone,  just let her be okay.

Sarcoids - the most common skin tumor in horses worldwide

My filly had this spot on her face that looked like a bug bite, and she had to little lump on her left front shoulder that was just a bump, you could barely see it but you could feel it.  Both of these have been there for over a year.

In May 2013 we went to the vet for coggins and I asked about them.  He told me it was a form of cancer called a Sarcoid.  I asked him what I needed to do about it and he told me to watch it and to leave it alone.  He said if it started growing then something would have to be done.  I asked what and he told me that he could remove it surgically ($400) but it would come back several times until we could get all of it and each time it came back it would be worse.  It could easily take 10 or more surgeries to get all of it.

This is my baby.  I wanted a second opinion so I called and made an appointment at another vet and was told the same thing.  I came home and started researching.  I found out that these are common to horses and if you bothered them they got angry and then turned aggressive.  Just from the two vets looking at them and touching them they turned aggressive.  They had stayed the same size for a year and from May to July both of them started growing like crazy.

Both vets and my research told me that there was lots of ways to treat them and almost none of them worked, the Sarcoid would come back worse and you would have to do treatment again.  It could get so aggressive that it would spread rapidly over large areas of the body and the horse would have to be put down.  Sarcoids are caused by the Bovine Papilloma Virus.

I wasn't willing to try something that was going to assure me of losing her.  So I went back to researching it.  I found two products that assured me they would work.  I called and talked to both vets about them.  Both of them agreed that the product called Xxterra would work but it was painful to the horse and it would get a whole lot worse before it got better.  Over a few months it would kill it and it would fall out and leave a big hole and I would then have to deal with severe infection.

Only a vet can purchase this product.  They were both willing to order it for me and both of them refused to use it on her, I had to do it.  Research states the following about Xxterra. It alters the antigenicity of a sarcoid to stimulate the hosts immune system and results in an immune rejection reaction of the sarcoid.  It also says that 10% of horses will have a recurrence and have to be treated a 2nd time.  The 2nd time it says that 2% will have a 3rd recurrence.  After the 3rd treatment there is no documentation of it coming back.

I had the vet order it for me.  1 ounce is $100.  You use it daily for 4 days and then take a 10 day break.  If it's not flaking and cracking you do another 4 days and you keep doing it till it's gone.  Usually it is about 60 days.  You can't even treat them one at a time because when you start the treatment on one the virus will try to go to the other one.  It's painful to the horse as it burns it down to the root.  It has to be bandaged, the one on her shoulder is going to be heck to bandage and her cheekbone is going to be even worse.

In my research I read 100's of reviews from people who has used Xxterra.  All of them said it eventually worked and the horse had not had any recurrence once they were gone.  But, god the horror stories I read of the effects of using it.  It seems to be the only option.  The other product that is also supposed to work can only be purchased from the University of Liverpool by a vet.  I couldn't find a price for it.

Today is July 25, 2013 and I applied it for the 1st time today.  Because there are so many people on the internet asking if anyone has used Xxterra and wanting to know exactly what happens I am going to take pictures of it daily and keep a record of what is happening.  I will keep it posted here every 4 days or so.

IMPORTANT INFO ON BOVINE PAPILLOMA VIRUS
It is an infectious DNA virus that comes from cattle.  There is vaccines to give cattle for it.  Cattle can carry it and not have the sarcoids but it is still infectious.  It is primarily found in calves under 3 years of age. It can be transmitted by tack, ropes, halters or anything that touches the cattle who carry it.

Since so far none of the other horses have it I'm going to quarantine Skyla to the barn during treatment.  Now I guess I will also be paranoid about checking all the horses every time I feed.  It is usually only found in young horses although older horses can get it.  Unluckily I have cattle all the way around me so I guess I'll be doing lots more research to see if there is any way to protect my horses from it, especially since I have 3 pregnant mares.