Do you think AZT could be used for cats with the herpes virus? tonya jb...@tds.net wrote: Graca,
Hello. I responded to your email earlier but had some problems with my email and am not sure if you received it. This is basically what I said. If you get two emails for this sorry. AZT is an antiviral used in human medicine to treat HIV. It is generally used in combination with other antivirals. Unfortunately, these combinations of antivirals have not been found to be effective against felv in cats. At least there are no good studies to support that. AZT is often not used or stopped in people because it often causes anemia and bone marrow toxicity. This is a very widely known side effect of AZT. For this reason, I would listen to the vet that suggests stopping the AZT. Since anemia can be a common symptom of felv and your cat is experiencing it. It is either because of progression of the felv disease or a side effect of the drugs. If it is the drug, stop giving it and the anemia should improve (this can be monitored by looking at the blood for reticulocytes - which are like baby red blood cells and indicate that the bone marrow is trying to fix the anemia - this is a good sign). If it is the felv disease progressing than the AZT is not really helping you anyway and there isn't much reason to continue giving it. If you want to continue to treat the felv virus, there is a lot of buzz about something called Imulan. It is the first FDA approved drug for the treatment of felv/fiv in the United States. You may want to ask your vet about this possibility. It may be beneficial to stop your current meds and try this. I don't know. It would be trial and error. Keep in mind that anemia and bone marrow suppression in a felv positive cat is a poor prognostic sign. In general, if it were me, I would stop the AZT and watch for improvement of the anemia. I may add Imulan (I have no experience with this drug yet), would consider a blood transfusion, from an immunized cat, if the anemia is significant enough and transfer factor if there is GI upset. Hope this helps. Jenny ---- Graca Azevedo wrote: > Dear All, I was so upset with my sick cat that I did not introduce myself as new to list a few days ago. I do apologize. I am writing from Brazil, have two rescued cats. One of them is Felv+. He has been treated on AZT and interferon for 2 years and half. The virus reached his bone marrow and he has anemia. Two vets have examined him. One said that I should stop with the AZT and the other advised to continue. I failed to find on the mail archives any report on cats being treated with AZT. I would be most grateful to hear what any of you have to say. Regards, Graça Azevedo Veja quais são os assuntos do momento no Yahoo! +Buscados http://br.maisbuscados.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org _______________________________________________ Felvtalk mailing list Felvtalk@felineleukemia.org http://felineleukemia.org/mailman/listinfo/felvtalk_felineleukemia.org
