Get Dr. Dressler's Dog Cancer Diet FREE Ya want more on melatonin? You just hit the jackpot!
Why should we be interested in this stuff? Â First of all, melatonin used with chemo versus chemo alone more than doubled the survival time of human cancer patients. Big effect here folks. Â Secondly, melatonin decreased the side effects related to chemotherapy. Â These included low platelet counts, irritations of the lining of the mouth (stomatitis), nervous system injury (neurotoxicity), and heart toxicity (cardiotoxicity). Â Here is the abstract.
Now, don’t go away mad, because there is more.  Melatonin helps overcome weight loss due to cancer (cancer cachexia)  in advanced cancer patients, with no change in how much food they are eating. As if this were not enough, a study looked at over 600 cancer patients with a variety of solid-tissue tumors received melatonin.  The 1 year survival time of the group that took melatonin was more than a third greater than those that did not. Â
Melatonin was the topic of a medical conference which discussed the ability of melatonin to cause some cancer cells to not only die off directly, but go back to being healthy body cells, and decrease cancer spread (metastasis). To boot, melatonin is an immune stimulator.
Anyway, lots of promising stuff here. Â One of the points made at the NIH conference mentioned was that this information has been around for years, but for some mysterious reason has not made it into the medical or veterinary knowledge pool. Â As I pointed out in the last post, I think the obvious reason is that you can’t patent it, which means no pharmaceutical company marketing for sales…but we’ll go over that in some future post.
Anyway, here’s the skinny on side effects and whatnot… Â Don’t give your dog melatonin during the daytime, it messes up the circadian rhythm and causes headaches. Â Any supplement given by mouth has potential for digestive upset (vomiting or nausea). Â If your dog has any immune mediated disease (like some types of underactive thryoid problems, dry eye, lupus, pemphigus, allergies, and so on), avoid it. Don’t give it to your dog if he or she is on calcium channel blockers (some types of heart and blood pressure meds), or is on fluoxetine (Prozac). Â Diabetic dogs may need less insulin on melatonin. If your dog has diabetes, begin melatonin only with your vet’s close supervision and instruction, otherwise skip melatonin. If your dog is an epileptic, I would avoid melatonin as well.
There are statements suggesting melatonin should not be used with leukemia or lymphoma patients circulating around. Â I have tried to find some actual evidence for these (a paper, case report, anything real) but to no avail. Â Any input from the readers? Same thing with this idea that it can cause retinal injury- appears to be speculation, but I am open to any documented, real evidence.
Doses vary. Â For early dog cancer patients, use about 1-2 mg per 40 lbs body weight, once a day, given at night. Â For advanced dog cancer patients, use about 5 mg per 40 lbs. Â Give with food.
There are ways to help increase your dog’s natural melatonin levels that don’t cost a cent. Â Make sure your loved dog sleeps in total darkness, 10 hours daily. Â No TV glare, no computer monitor, no nighlight. Â If you are doing home cooking, give melatonin-rich food. Â The highest is brown rice and oats, but carbs are not good calorie sources for dogs with cancer. Â Try some fresh sage, lots of naturally occurring melatonin in sage leaf. Keep your dog away from high voltage, as electric fields cause melatonin levels to drop. Meditate with your dog. Â My friend Jim Jacobson wrote a book on it. Â Meditation increases melatonin levels.
Best to all,
Dr Dressler
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About the Author
Dr. Demian Dressler, DVM is known as the "dog cancer vet" and is author of Dog Cancer Survival Guide: Beyond Surgery, Chemotherapy & Radiation. Visit his blog and sign up free to get the latest information about canine cancer. Go to http://DogCancerBlog.com.
{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }
I’ve been reading about giving Melatonin to dogs and I’m a bit confused here. Vodka is on chemo+steroids+supplements and he seemed to be too hyper to sleep well until a week ago. Lately, it has gotten much better – we moved his steroids and his Glutamine to the morning and he seems to be panting less at night and sleeping better. I’ve been considering giving him Melatonin, but I read a few conflicting papers about how Melatonin interferes with the effect of corticosteroids. And since he’s on Prednisone and it seems to be helping fight the MCTs, I’m a bit paranoid about giving Melatonin to him.
Do you have any experience with Melatonin administration when the pooch is on steroids?
Thx!
-K
My dog Candy was prescribed a melatonin regimen for her Atypical Cushings– meaning that her hormones were out of whack but she had normal cortisol (steroid) levels on the Tennessee Adrenal Panel. But, melatonin is also prescribed as an alternative treatment for dogs with Cushings who do have high cortisol (steroid) levels. I was giving melatonin and phosphatidylserine (to keep cortisol levels in check)
Some are using melatonin patches in lieu of oral melatonin to deliver a supposed more reliable, even dose and some claim that it prevents daytime drowsiness. So, I guess what I am saying is that when dogs have high steroid levels (cortisol) that melatonin is being touted as in Cushings disease (high cortisol levels) to prevent panting, excessive thirst, excessive urination etc….. So does melatonin lower cortisol level or modulate it? In your case would the melatonin modulate or lower the pred, thereby canceling out the pred or have no effect. I guess Dr. Dressler will help us out here.
Would prednisolone have fewer side effects than prednisone–I heard that on one of my lists. Also there is a compounded version of prednisone without the negative effects of prednisone but the same benefits. Best of both worlds–same positive effect, none of the negative effects. Some have used this form to reduce liver enzymes. I don’t know if this is anecdotal information or supported by studies.
I have taken Candy off melatonin now because of some things I have read to not give it with a lymphoproliferative cancer, as in cutaneous T cell lympoma which Candy has–also called Mycosis Fungoides. I understand it has promise with organ tumors though.
I don’t know for a fact about the interference of Pred with Melatonin but thought this info would help provide some understanding of the mechanism of action for which it is used in Cushings.
Lilly
oops, error above, I meant melatonin implants, (in lieu of oral melatonin) not patches.
Lilly
1. There is not an interaction between pred and melatonin. There was a study using dexamethasone where melatonin blocked the suppression of normal immune responses (but not the suppression of cancerous white blood cells).
2. The effects of melatonin in cushing’s is mediated by sex hormone imbalance and effects of it on hair follicles and other body systems, not by suppression of cortisol or the other corticosteroids that are in excess in typical cushings.
Melatek markets Dermatonin, the implants. They have a web site:
http://www.melatek.net/dogswebpage/researchfactspage.html
Check it out for further reading.
Best,
Dr D
Hi Dr. Drexler:
You wrote, “There are statements suggesting melatonin should not be used with leukemia or lymphoma patients circulating around.”
I have read that melatonin also has antioxidant properties. That may be the reason for the statements. I have found that many vets, as I am sure you are aware, tell their clients to never give any antioxidants when receiving chemotherapy.
Do you have some current thoughts on this subject?
Patrick
Where did you come up with this info?
My vet and the vets at the University of Tenn, all have put my dog on this.
Check out Dr Oliver at the vet university of Tenn.
He knows more about atypical cushing’s then most.
So tell us where you got this info, what medical test have you done to prove this?
Hi Doc – my Mack is an 11 yr golden with meningioma of olfactory lobe. He is on prednisone 10mg every other day and phenobarb 75mg bid. Can he take melatonin for sleep? After sleeping quite well at night since he was diag’d in Sept’08 has recently been up at night panting. His wt is 84-85lbs. How much can he take? Thank you so much in advance,
Karen Bender
Hi Doc – I understand melatonin can be taken in addition to prednisone, but what about along with PHENOBARB?
Thank you so much,
Karen
Karen, I do not see a immediate conflict aside from excessive sedation possibly. There have been no studies though, so the use of these together has not been shown to be definitively safe. In the realm of neurotransmitter modification, nobody knows the whole real story…just not enough info yet..
D
Thank you, Dr.Dressle, for your response. Mack is getting closer to the end now. I stopped the melatonin (only gave it to him for about 5 nights) and he actually slept better last night. I lowered his prednisone (initially he was on 10mg every other day until our vet raised him to 10mb bid last week.) Maybe that was keeping him up, also. He is still eating heartily, still wags his tail when I come home, and still barks at people passing the house. He is having labored breathing somewhat. I just don’t know where the fine line lies between his feeling well and actually starting to die. I don’t want it to be an emergency euthanasia, but I don’t want to do it prematuely either.
Thank you for helping and listening,
Karen
I have a 13yr old spayed female Akita, diagnosed with Cushings, not yet determined if adrenal or pituitary, and has hypothyroidism, and have just started her on Ridlin for her weakening ( and I assmue painful ) hind quarter.
Can melatonin help relieve the symptoms of Cushings, regardless of which type, and if not, why not?; and what does the hypothyroid have to do with it?
I appreciate your answer.
Thank you
Jean Brickwedde
Sorry, Rimadyl, not Ridilin
Jean
Dr. Dressler,
Why do you say avoid melatonin if your dog is epileptic? A lot of canine epilepsy sites recommend it.
Thank you,
Kristen
I have a question for Dr. Dressler
My dog was diagnosed with atypical cushings (pituitary tumor/sex hormone elevation)
I was told to give 3 mg. of melatonin in the morning and 3 mg. of melatonin at night along with flax. I read your article about the problem with giving melatonin in the daytime. I also spoke with Dr. Oliver from Tennessee who told me that this has been the regimen for atypical cushings for the past 10 years. What is the best way to administer melatonin to my dog? Also, will giving melatonin in the daytime cause health risks for my dog?
Thank you.
Beg to differ with the doc but according to Dr Oliver “STEROID PROFILES IN THE DIAGNOSIS OF CANINE ADRENAL DISORDERS” under sub heading melatonin “Also, in dogs with adrenal disease that are treated with melatonin, and repeat adrenal steroid panels are done, cortisol levels are consistently reduced, and estradiol levels are variably reduced.29 Inhibition of the 21-hydroxylase enzyme would lower cortisol levels, and inhibition of the aromatase enzyme would lower estradiol levels. Estradiol levels were decreased in a prior study of dogs treated with melatonin.31 Results of in vitro studies with human MCF-7 breast cancer cells also revealed that melatonin inhibited aromatase enzyme, which resulted in reduced estradiol levels.56 Melatonin treatment for cases of mild adrenal disease in dogs may be effective, and particularly in cases where sex steroids are increased.”