Eleven-year-old Sophie is winning her battle with polycythaemia vera thanks to specialist-led treatment at Linnaeus-owned Anderson Moores Veterinary Specialists in Winchester.
Sophie's Feline Fine Despite Extremely Rare Blood Condition
7 months ago 
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A much-loved cat with a chronic and incredibly rare blood condition is beating the odds thanks to her fighting spirit and specialist treatment from a Winchester animal hospital.
Eleven-year-old Sophie’s battle with polycythaemia vera started six years ago when she was rushed as an emergency case to Linnaeus-owned Anderson Moores Veterinary Specialists.
Her condition is so rare that it is a one-in-a-million chance of her having it.
Even though Sophie is living with the chronic illness, her owner Claire Edwards from Westbury in Wiltshire said her beloved pet now has an excellent quality of life and you would not know she has the rare condition, which causes her body to make too many red blood cells which thickens her blood.
Claire said: “Sophie is a very special cat who, against all the odds, has stabilised with her extremely rare and relatively unknown blood condition.
“She willingly has her blood tests without any fuss or sedation. Every day with Sophie is a gift having nearly lost her to this most unusual disease.”
The first signs of trouble for Sophie were red rims around her eyes, increasing tiredness when playing and random twitching around her face and shoulders, which progressed to passing blood in her urine and violent convulsions.
Tests at an emergency vet confirmed a dangerously high red blood count at 88 per cent, so Sophie was referred to Anderson Moores for specialist care due to concerns of a possible brain or kidney tumour.
However, further diagnosis confirmed Sophie’s incredibly rare condition of polycythemia vera, which is actually a non-aggressive form of leukaemia which can be treated with chemotherapy pills (now reduced to a minimum dosage), phlebotomies and regular monitoring.
Sophie is also looked after at Garston Veterinary Group in Frome, who have been advised by Anderson Moores specialists on Sophie’s treatment.
Aran Mas, specialist in small animal internal medicine at Anderson Moores, said: “Six years ago, Sophie’s owner feared the worst as she was referred to us as an emergency after suffering from seizures and with a dangerously high red blood cell count.
“The situation was even more fraught for her owner as she had just lost a cat at the grand old age of 18 and only adopted Sophie and her twin sister Sheba a few months previously.
“The good news is that Sophie’s red blood count is now stable and is 42 per cent to 45 per cent, which is half of its original state.”
Anderson Moores offers specialist care in anaesthesia and analgesia, cardiology, dentistry, dermatology, diagnostic imaging, emergency and critical care, feline hyperthyroid clinic, internal medicine, neurology, oncology, orthopaedics, and soft tissue surgery.
For more information, visit www.andersonmoores.com or search for Anderson Mores Veterinary Specialists on social media.
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