Lifestyle

‘Miracle’ cat with cancer survives years after vets said she should be put down


(Picture: Kirstin Sedgwick/Metro.co.uk)

Meet Mala, affectionately known to her owner, Kirstin, as ‘the miracle cat’.

Mala earned her title after defying the expectations of vets, who said she would only survive a maximum of a few months following her diagnosis with lymphoma, a type of cancer that attacks the immune system.

Six years ago, when Mala was diagnosed, vets told Kirstin to have the bengal cat put down, explaining that the cost of chemotherapy would be high and that even with treatment she might not survive longer than 18 months.

Kirstin says she ‘couldn’t bear the thought of losing her’, so decided to refuse vet’s recommendations and invest in surgery and chemotherapy to keep her beloved cat alive.

Six years later, Mala is in remission, happy, and healthy.

Kirstin met Mala when she was just a week old. It was love at first sight, and Kirstin took the cat home when she reached 12 weeks.

‘She is unique,’ Kirstin tells Metro.co.uk. ‘Very vocal, energetic, affectionate and a little crazy at times.

Mala as a kitten (Picture: Kirstin Sedgwick/Metro.co.uk)

‘True to the Bengal breed, she likes to have a chat, loves to climb and play fetch. She’s a fussy eater but loves Dreamies and the occasional cheese string!

‘She doesn’t like hoovers and she will shout very loudly if she’s hungry.’

When Mala was just a year old, Kirstin began noticing some changes.

‘We could tell she wasn’t herself,’ remembers Kirstin. ‘She wasn’t moving very much (she just sat in an unusual place on the stairs) and her fur was not as shiny as usual.’

When she spotted blood in Mala’s litter tray, Kirstin rushed the cat to the vet, who found a lump when doing a physical examination.

‘It was devastating,’ says Kirstin, ‘even before it was confirmed.

(Picture: Kirstin Sedgwick/Metro.co.uk)

‘He said that she would need to have a biopsy but he was pretty sure it would be cancer, and told us we should consider having her put to sleep as the cost for chemotherapy was going to be very high.

‘I was devastated and couldn’t bear the thought of losing her, she is such a big part of the family and I just couldn’t do it.

‘I told the vet that as long as she had a chance at survival, we would get her the treatment.

‘They warned us that even with the chemotherapy, she would only have 9-18 months to live. I felt that if she had a chance at another year of life, she should have it.’

On the 21st of August 2013, Mala was officially diagnosed with large cell lymphoma of the intestine. The family were in pieces.

(Picture: Kirstin Sedgwick/Metro.co.uk)

Mala had to undergo an operation to remove the tumour and urgently needed to find a matching blood donor.

That’s where her first bit of luck came in. Kirstin contacted the cat’s breeder, he brought Mala’s brother and father into the surgery, and her brother, Pepe, was a match. He donated blood and the operation went smoothly.

After the surgery it was time for chemotherapy, first with injections then using a course of tablets.

It was a stressful experience for the family and for Mala.

(Picture: Kirstin Sedgwick/Metro.co.uk)

‘Coming round from sedation made her dizzy and wasn’t very nice to see,’ says Kirstin. ‘Needless to say she is not a fan of the vet’s surgery these days!’

Thankfully, Mala responded well to her treatment. She has been in remission since 2014.

Despite the vet’s predictions, the cat is thriving.

(Picture: Kirstin Sedgwick/Metro.co.uk)

‘She is now seven years old and is doing fine, she is her usual happy, energetic self,’ Kristin tells us. ‘We had a scare in January 2017 when she began limping on one of her back legs. She was then diagnosed with patella luxation and had to have further surgery to correct her knee cap position.

‘It was then that the vets looked through her notes and said that it couldn’t be the same cat they’d had in back in 2013 as she could not have survived that long!

‘Her leg is now fully recovered and she is back to her normal self, and hopefully she will remain in remission for the foreseeable future.’



Send us your cat stories!

As the media partners of CatFest, coming to London on 29 June, we’re excited to share loads of stories about brilliant cats.

All cats are wonderful, of course, but if you have a story of a truly exceptional kitty, we want to hear it.

We’re talking about lifesaving cats, cats who’ve overcome challenges, kitties who’ve changed things for the better.

If you’ve got a story to share, send us an email at ellen.scott@metro.co.uk with the details and pictures.

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MORE: A cat festival with feline celebs, kitty-themed films, and vegan street food is coming to London

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