Jezi's Preliminary Diagnosis

I'm not sure where to start -  Jezi's limp did not respond to the loxicom, Jezi's limp did not respond to rest, Jezi's limp was odd almost as if her whole front gait was affected, maybe she was compensating? My thoughts went to Alfi, Jan's dog who died of bone cancer but I tried to dismiss the idea over the weekend knowing the Monday morning appointment would soon be on us. I hadn't mentioned my suspicions to Steve, I felt he had enough on his plate, but I did tell Linda and Ian that I was afraid of the diagnosis.

Vet Beth gave Jezi a thorough going over, she manipulated all the joint in her front legs and found no stiffness or pain, but she did find the pain, between the elbow and the shoulder. She said she needed to prepare me for the strong possibility of bad news, but I butted in and said it's Ok I've already thought of it. She went on to explain that an Xray would confirm her suspicions of osteosarcoma - a bone tumor - but that we should really think about the right road ahead for Jezi. Getting a conclusive diagnosis would not help Jezi, would not change the treatment plan or the way we go ahead. Would it give us peace of mind? I doubt it, unless the result is negative of course, but then if that is the case, she will improve with strong pain relief anyway. The best way forward is the least intrusive for Jezi. Amputation of the limb was discussed, but we all agree that will not be happening, not to a bitch going towards her 11 birthday. We now have 7 days to make decisions regarding our plan of action, of course that will depend on whether she responds to the painkillers, or not. To Xray or not is the first decision -  but if my gut feeling confirmed by the vet is right, than the prognosis is poor, very poor, and we'll be lucky to have a couple of months. This really is one of those situations when I hope I'm wrong, very wrong.