Mystery Lesion on Clown

Humblefish · Mar 21, 2016

Formalin - Do the bath for 30-60 minutes max, but remove the fish immediately at the first sign of distress. Aerate heavily both before & during the bath, and temperature control the water. The following products contain formalin: Formalin-MS, Quick Cure, Aquarium Solutions Ich-X, Kordon Rid-Ich Plus. Use protection (rubber gloves, face mask, eye protection, etc.) whenever handling formalin as it is a known carcinogen! However, you can add Methylene Blue to the formalin bath (1 capful per 2-3 gallons of bath water.)

Acriflavine - Do the bath for 75-90 minutes, but remove the fish immediately at the first sign of distress. Aerate heavily both before & during the bath, and temperature control the water. The following products contain acriflavine: Acriflavine-MS and Ruby Reef Rally. DO NOT mix acriflavine with any other chemicals.

Newstead · Mar 21, 2016

Found FormalinMS on petsolutions. . But it says not to use if there is an open wound. Think the bubbles would protect it?

Humblefish · Mar 21, 2016

Newstead said:
Found FormalinMS on petsolutions. . But it says not to use if there is an open wound. Think the bubbles would protect it?

Hmm, don't know. But many use formalin for treating Brooklynella, and fish with that often have open wounds either from the protozoa itself or from scraping on rocks. Formalin probably just burns or irritates the wound. You can offset this by using methylene blue (which soothes cuts/wounds) in conjunction with formalin. Kordon Rid-Ich Plus is a formalin based product with malachite green (similar to methylene blue) already mixed it. That may be your best bet for this particular situation.

Newstead · Mar 21, 2016

Thanks ... will order some today!

Newstead · Mar 28, 2016

Continuing saga of Ilsa and her lump/bubbles. Finally received the Kordon Ich-Rid Plus. She tolerated the 60 minute dip well and was moved back to the cleaned out hospital tank with Rick. Her lump looked pretty raw after the dip, so just added Kanaplex and Metroplex to the water for tonight. Will add the Furan2 again with them tomorrow if all is well.
If nothing else, I now have a fully stocked med supply for any/all fish ailments (and the pic doesn't even show the 2 medicated refrigerated foods or 3 vitamin supplments ).
Ilsa is certainly fighting whatver this is, and handling all the meds well so far, still eating!

Newstead · Mar 28, 2016

Try again for pics

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...

Newstead · Apr 3, 2016

After six more days in kanaplex/metroplex/furan2 following the dip in Rid-Ich, the bubbles are back and the lump appears unchanged. Still eating well. Try another dip or assume this is an ulcerated tumor or something completely resistant to meds? I just don't know what else to try.
Don't know if its the meds in the water or what, but can't get a clear pic. The blur above the lump are the bubbles growing back.

Humblefish · Apr 3, 2016

How many days total has it been in antibiotics? If more than 10, I don't think further treatment is going to help any.

Newstead · Apr 4, 2016

She's has been in the hospital tank with the triple antibiotics, one dip in Rid Ich and 2 courses of prazi since March 12... so I guess we have tried it all. Will start water changes and move her back to the biocube and let her enjoy her domain as long as possible. She and her mate are 4 now, hope perhaps it will resolve on its own. Will update if anything changes - and if we lose her I hope to talk my vet into a necropsy so we can at least know what the heck this was.
Thanks so much for all the help and ideas! If anyone runs across a similar situation that was successfully resolved, please let me know.

Humblefish · Apr 4, 2016

Newstead said:
She's has been in the hospital tank with the triple antibiotics, one dip in Rid Ich and 2 courses of prazi since March 12... so I guess we have tried it all. Will start water changes and move her back to the biocube and let her enjoy her domain as long as possible. She and her mate are 4 now, hope perhaps it will resolve on its own. Will update if anything changes - and if we lose her I hope to talk my vet into a necropsy so we can at least know what the heck this was.
Thanks so much for all the help and ideas! If anyone runs across a similar situation that was successfully resolved, please let me know.

Sometimes all the meds in the world just can't fix a situation. Your best bet is to hope it is a benign tumor. Although at some point it will probably need to be surgically removed.

Newstead · Apr 5, 2016

Thanks, Humblefish, I really appreciate all the help from you. I have tried finding a fish vet but have come up empty in NC. There is a professor at NC State vet school who specializes in marine, but I have tried to contact him without success. My vet is small animal - I doubt she would try, but won't hurt to ask!

Newstead · Dec 3, 2016

Update on Ilsa, our female clown. She is still with us, a year after the mystery lump/bubble began on her face. She behaves normally and eats like a pig. She has never spawned after this appeared, though. She and her mate Rick were moved from the Biocube29 to our 75 gallon rimless this summer. The tumor/lump has continued to grow so I am not sure how much longer she has, but at least she seems to feel well. The only behavior change I have seen is that occasionally she goes to the surface of the water and literally pokes her face out of the water .
Thanks for all the help with this. Thought an update would be appropriate. Still would love to hear

if anyone has seen anything like this.

Humblefish · Dec 3, 2016

Sorry to hear/see this. But props to you for continuing to care for her. If the tumor has been with her this long, it must be benign.

melypr1985 · Dec 3, 2016

Wow. That has gotten big. I would keep an eye on that thing interfering with her eye or mouth. Looks like it's getting close to her eye.

Newstead · Dec 4, 2016

Humblefish said:
Sorry to hear/see this. But props to you for continuing to care for her. If the tumor has been with her this long, it must be benign.

Thanks, Humble. You were such a great help when I was treating her.

melypr1985 said:
Wow. That has gotten big. I would keep an eye on that thing interfering with her eye or mouth. Looks like it's getting close to her eye.

That is what scares me as well. I check her everyday, scared the eye will be gone.

I wish there was a fish vet in NC - I would love to see if it could be removed. After 4 1/2 years, we are attached to her.

melypr1985 · Dec 4, 2016

Newstead said:
That is what scares me as well. I check her everyday, scared the eye will be gone.

I wish there was a fish vet in NC - I would love to see if it could be removed. After 4 1/2 years, we are attached to her.

Until and unless it starts to interfere in her ability to see and eat, then I wouldn't do anything to it. But you can be doing research on how to anesthetize a fish just in case it become necessary to cut it off. Not saying it will, but it's better to be well informed when you need it than scrambling around for the info last minute.

Newstead · Jun 13, 2018

Yet another update on Ilsa, the now elephant nose clown. It will be 3 years this August since the first lump appeared on her face and 2 years since the saga above with every medicine known to fishdom. We resigned ourselves to letting her live peacefully with what time she had left, which we thought would be short.

Ilsa had other plans. She & Rick, her life partner, are still with us at well over 6 years old. Although unsightly, the tumor has not inhibited her in the least, despite moves to a 75 gal system, then a move 3.5 hours away, then recently back to a biocube 29. Here's to 6 more years for her & Rick!

Newstead · Aug 8, 2018

In case someone one day has something similar, a new development. After moving Ilsa & Rick back to the BC29 along with 2 to 6 year old LR, I had an outbreak of GHA I could not beat so I tried Reef Flux (fluconazole) on July 9.

On July 20 I was shocked to see that 2/3 of Ilsa's lump was gone overnight -all of the white flesh and bubbles were gone, leaving just an orange ragged lump behind. On July 26 she spawned for the first time since the lump appeared almost 3 years ago. I have watched it carefully for almost 3 weeks now and it appears to have healed up like that.

Reef Flux is an antifungal and she was treated with antifungals and antibiotics before with no or little result, so I am a bit perplexed. Obviously the Reef Flux addressed something the others didn't? (And 95% of the GHA is gone, for now).

Just more info on a perplexing problem.