Get Dr. Dressler's Dog Cancer Diet FREE I received a question recently asking if I had heard of Neoplasene, so I thought I should post about it.
Neoplasene is derived from bloodroot, an old herb used by native Americans. The stuff works but can be a bit much for an average dog lover to deal with. Read on.
It is delivered to the dog cancer patient in a salve that is rubbed on the tumor, or pills, or can be injected in the vein or around the tumor.
It is different from so-called “black salve”, as Neoplasene is a specific extract of bloodroot, not the whole herb. Only certain components of the plant are used.
There are a variety of successes documented, especially with tumors of the skin like fiborsarcomas, mast cell tumors, mammary tumors, and others.
Check out the photos on this link (you will have to scroll through the document towards the bottom). A little warning: some of these photos are a little clinical (they might be a little yucky for some).
http://www.docstoc.com/docs/2978296/Discussion-of-and-Clinical-Guide-for-The-treatment-of-neoplasm
Neoplasene is for use under veterinary supervision only. This is a good call by the makers of the product (Buck Mountain Botanicals). The reason for this is, when the ointment is applied to the tumor on the skin, the tumor cells start to die.
When the tumor cells die, the tissue tends to slough off. A hole is left which needs medical attention. This hole can be pretty big, especially if the tumor was on the larger side. Sometimes the defect produced after large sloughs can go down to the bone. Kind of heavy-duty for some dog lovers.
Other factors need to be considered before using Neoplasene. One is that your dog must not lick the ointment. An Elizabethan collar may be needed, sometimes for a long time. Another issue is the wound may need twice daily care. Finally, there can be pain or discomfort after application or use of Neoplasene, which may require the use of prescription strength pain control medication, in some cases.
Here is a link if you would like contact information for your veterinarian:
http://www.buckmountainbotanicals.net/treatments/neoplasene.html
Like many tools in medicine, we need to consider all the pros and cons of this treatment. For some dogs with cancer and those who love them, it may be a great match, but not necessarily for all.
I hope this information is helpful. For more outside the box ways to deal with canine cancer, check out the dog cancer e-book, The Dog Cancer Survival Guide, Beyond Chemotherapy, Radiation, and Surgery.
Best to all,
Dr D
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.
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Our dog was diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma in July, 2008. She was given 8-10 week life expectancy. We did a lot of research and decide to use the neoplasene. For our dog, the cancer is in the blood, not external as you mention above. We give her oral dosage 2 times per day. It has been almost 9 months and she is still doing well. We could not find too much research on neoplasene with hemangiosarcoma, so we started a blog site on her progress: http://addieandhemangiosarcoma.blogspot.com/.
Thanks for the website, it has been very helpful.
Denice
My dog had two tumors removed (one from his leg and one from his neck) that were diagnosed as hemangiopericytomas. I was advised that we did not have clean margins on either tumor removal and to expect that the tumors will be back within three to nine months unless we opt for radiation treatments. I found a vet in Houston that was familiar with Neoplasene and he receives oral doses twice per day without any side effects. It has now been 14 months and still no sign of the cancer and he is more active than ever.
Sandra … I also live in Houston and have been searching for a Vet that is familiar with Neoplasene. Could you please post that Vet’s name here so I can contact them.
I spoke with Dr. Fox this morning @ Buck Mountain Botanicals, the supplier of Neoplasene and he felt the injectable neoplasene in saline would work for my dog that has urethral cancer. My Vet is unfamiliar with this treatment so I’m looking for one here in Houston that is so I can discuss it with them.
The different posts I’ve read of dogs using the Neosplasene seems to be with good results. Hope yours continues to be healthy.
Thanks!
my 7 year old large breed mix was diagnosed last month with lymphoma and I am told he is stage IV because of all lymph node and spleen involvement. it is also possible he may have involvement in his lungs or some other unrelated lung thing going on because spots were seen on his lungs in the x-rays they did. my question is this: how can Neoplasene help him? I cant rub it on his spleen! (joke) how does it work when given orally? does it have a better success rate than the chinese medicine approach? I have him on omega 3 fish oils, l-glutamine, mushrooms, digestive enzymes, probiotics, garlic and homecooked food. How is the Neoplasene any better?
thank you for your time
I spent days tracking down a Vet in Houston that would administer the Neoplasene treatment. I finally got the name of a Dr. Stiles @ Tanglewilde Clinic that has used it. She uses both traditional & alternative treatments in her practice. I am waiting to hear back from her … hopefully, today … to see how we can incorporate it into my Little One’s battle.
Hi, rxgirl! If you are working with a Vet that is open to using Neoplasene, ask them to contact Dr. Fox and he will work with them to use the correct protocol. He suggested I print off the Clinical Studies and take it to my Vet. With it being lymphoma, it will probably be the oral doses. Check the Clinical Studies to see if there any other Vets have used in that manner. The other things you are using are pretty much inline with the other added treatments I’ve heard of to help slow the cancer growth. Good luck! I hope you find a way to keep your Doggie with you are a good while longer. Also >>> do read the blog that Denice (the first post here) has on her dog’s success with Neoplasene.
Rxgirl,
How is your dog doing? Our Cairn was just diagnosed with lymphoma also and we are researching neoplasene and hope to start him on it soon. I am looking for others who have had success with this treatment for lymphoma. These are difficult days but we feel so fortunate to have had Parker for 9 years already and had his unconditional love. Lynne
Hi Denice,
I’m also using the oral neo for my 10 1/2 y/o girl diagnosed with transitional cell carcinoma. She had surgery in June to remove the mass but the biopsy was pretty bad. Started her on .3 cc’s on July 2 – she’s up .5 cc’s as recommended by my Vet in Pa. Can you tell me how much your dog weighs and how much you gave her throughout the course of treatment. Also, has your Vet given you any idea how long the therapy will continue? Mine said if it works the neo will probably be continued for the rest of her life. I hope your girl is still doing well – your post put a smile on my face and boosted my hopes. Thank you so much!
is this treatment of Neoplasene a good treatment for nasal carcinoma?
how do we get information for breed and weight on how to administer etc. for neoplasene
Hello Dr. Dressler.
I have a 7 year old golden retriever that was dianosed with fibrosing
steatitus myositis inside of his abdomen area. The tumor has pockets
of cancer inside, and the tumor itself is very firm and good sized.
I was told by a doctor that the tumor very well may effect my dogs
uninary track area soon as it continues to grow, and he said that
the tumor will start to protude and press hard against his belly skin
area. Surgery would be radical because of the size of the tumor and
It’s location. It would call for lazering out the tumor and also
some good tissue, leaving a big cavity inside of my dogs abdomen.
I was told by the doctor that the cancer was a low grade cancer.
A screen would need to be implanted to keep my dogs insides from
falling out. I was told that their was a chance of life threatning
infection after the surgery, and a chance that the removal could
still cause problems with his uninary areas. The recovery would
be very painful, lenghthy, and if not careful, the screen could
come loose causing futher problems. I’m torn on what to do. I want
to save his life, but the surgery may kill him. I’ve been trying
proteolytic enzymes now for about a month to try to kill the
cancer cells. I’m just not sure if I’m giving him the right dose,
or if this will really help. I keep putting off the surgery. I even
read about neoplasene, and other natural things. I also pray quite
often. I know that you would need to see my dog to get a good idea
of the size, location, and feel of thet tumor, but from your past
experience, what would you suggest as far as the surgery option, as
a posed to the neoplasene or other remedy to fight the cancer. Time
is not on my side, and I do not want to lose my friend. Thank you.
Phillip
Dear Phillip,
the diagnosis tells me that the tumor cells were not submitted with the specimen to the path lab since they did not give you a cancer diagnosis. Fibrosing steatitis myositis means scar tissue around inflamed fat and muscle. You need re-biopsy. Once the kind of cancer is established, things may clarify a little bit.
Whatever you do, make sure that you are dealing with a board certified surgeon for this. Remember also that 7 is about 3-6 years less than average life expectancy for a Golden.
D
Hello,
7 year old neutered male rescue beagle was just diagnosed (ultrasound guided biopsy) with carcinoma of the prostate. Researching different treatment options. In the mean time, he is on piroxicam, misoprostol, and primor (bloody urine / UTI is what led to us discovering the prostate tumor) and I also have him on saw palmetto, turmeric, maitake, and noni juice. Am very interested in Neoplasene. Any recommendation of a veterinarian in the seattle area that is familiar with it / has used it would be very welcome. Snoopy is a wonderful dog – he was my dad’s until my dad passed away in september so the diagnosis is especially hard. I had not planned on getting another dog after my Irish Setter lost her battle with osteosarcoma in 2000 and now I’d dealing with dog cancer yet again.
Thank you,
Nancy and Snoopy
Nancy
One approach would be to contact Buck Mountain and ask for a reference for a vet, then have the vet call Buck Mountain after you bring your Snoopy in for an initial exam and consult.
Best,
Dr D
Hello Dr. Dressler,
We found out on two days ago our 11 year old golden retriever has oral cancer. We found it on the inside of her mouth inside her cheek. A little history about Chloe. 6 years ago she was undergoing a simple procedure and had an allergic reaction to the anesthesia. 5 years prior she had surgery and we didn’t have an issue. As a result of the complications in surgery they flushed fluids in to her. We didn’t find out for three days and many calls to the vet that the flushing had impacted her kidneys. In the three days she lost weight and everytime I called the vet they kept telling me it was because she still had some of the anesthesia in her. She had to be admitted to the hospital and on IV for four days. As a result she has been on special diet of Hills KD dog food.
The vet told us if he removed it he would have to also remove part of her jaw. He said he didn’t think should would be able to handle all that surgery. He said the growth would continue to grow and she would die from lack of nutrition. He really did not leave us with any hope. We still have her on the KD dog food but have changed it to soft canned food. Do you think Neoplasene might be an option to slow the growth? We are willing to try anything.
Thank you.
Dear Karen,
well, this is a tough one. Neoplasene does indeed kill cancer cells, and I would bet that it would exterminate your dog’s cancer cells too. However, I have two concerns. One is that as the cells die, your dog might not want to eat, and this could take days. Secondly, with the tumor gone, a hole could be produced in your dog’s cheek that might need to be closed with a surgery. If the tumor is more invasive than just the cheek, the defect left could possibly be so large that it would not be repairable. This is a very tough call. I suppose if all other options were exhausted, and there were no choice, this would be an idea. You would need to be ready for these two issues though, and really need to ask yourself if they occurred, would you be prepared for them? If the answer is yes, and you are in a corner, it might be a gamble you are willing to take.
I hope this helps,
Dr D
Doctor D.
I have a 6 year old JRT and she was diagnosed with bone cancer in her jaw. I called my vet after doing as much research as the internet would allow and told him about neoplasene. He called Buck Mountain and ordered the treatment for my dog. I am happy to say that she is doing well and the inside of her mouth is healing nicely. BTW she was not supposed to make it past Thanksgiving.
Thanks for all you do
Kurt
Thanks Kurt, glad things are going well
Dr D
Dear Dr. Dressler,
Is Neoplasene appropriate for internal usage? Eddie, my 11 1/2 year old Labrador has osteosarcoma and I’m pretty much willing to try anything. Traditional methods (surgery, amputation, chemo, radiation) are not really an option as his tumour is very large and located on his side, between his ribcage and hip. How would Neoplase work internally on something like this?
Thank you for any advise you can give.
Heather
My 6 year old Belgian Malinois has a brachial nerve sheath tumor. Because of the location, injectable neoplasene is not a possibility so we have been giving her an oral dose twice a day. She is in good health and feeling spunky, and has outlived the predictions of the vets at the University Hospital who wanted to amputate the leg and essentially sent us home to manage the pain and die. I also give her Chinese herbs, as provided by my holistic vet and take her every two weeks for biocom treatments.
What is your opinion of the biocom treatments? We did that prior to my vet learning about the neoplasene, and the treatments seem to have helped.
Dr. Dressler,
Our 8 Yr old Black Lab was diagnosed with Nasal Adenocarcinoma last week. The Doctor said he removed over 90% of the tumor form his left nasal passage. They confirmed it had not spread behind his nose to the Cranial Plate and has not spread to his Chest. We visit our Oncologist tomorrow. Would Neoplasene be beneficial being that we may have caught it in an early stage and, if yes, how would it be administered?
Thank you for your hard work and research!
RC
My dog has mast cell and was diagnoised last march and doing great. I used the neoplasene for some of the external tumors both injectable and salve, it worked great!. However there was alot of healing time involved as well as some surgery to repair what the neoplasese ate away from the cancer cells. Just relize sometimes this can make some horendous wounds but it also can be a great experiance simply because the tumors are now gone..My dog also took the oral neoplasese to. I raw feed Dannon my dog so I took the oral and put it in a sticky meat ball and threw it to him so he gulped it down. The taste of the neoplasene is horrible and can burn the mouth from my experiance so it is important to get them to swallow it in something. They trypically wont eat it in there food mixed with it, and squirting it into there mouth in my opinion isnt an option because of the nasty taste as well as the burning sensation. After using the product for 6 months I had great results but unfortunatly my dog became allergic to the oral.So we stopped the neoplasene and started on another product called Angiostop and Revivin. Both kill the cancer from many diffrent ways. Both are oral and holistic. You can find out more about these wonderfull products by visiting the web site
http://www.DrChi-health.com The angiostop works on many various cancers with out the bloody wounds as side effects. I might add my dog Dannon is doing great after haveing a previous grim prognosis. The other thing that has really helped him is KAngen water. This is an alkaline and antioxigend water . Cancer cannot live in an alkaline enviorment or without sugar. Acidity increases disease as well as sugar. Dannon has great energy since adding the Kangen water he is back to his old self.
Dear RC
it can be administered topically (right on the site), and also orally and as an injected solution. Have your vet call Dr. Buck at Buck Mountain. I would consider its use in your case!
Keep up your hard work too!
Dr D
Dear Kammee,
thanks for the info!
Best,
Dr D
Dr. D ~
Our almost eight-year old spayed female Golden Retriever/Chow mix had surgery last Tuesday – Jan. 26th on a small soft tissue sarcoma tumor on her left front forearm. Biopsy results revealed the tumor as hemangiopericytoma with very narrow, but clean, borders of 0.1-0.4 on the edges and 0.1-0.2 deep. An integrative vet we are consulting with is recommending topical application of Neoplasene to kill off any remaining cancer cells. And, given the narrow clean margins, we expect there to be some.
I’ve skimmed through the research document you referred to above, and am wondering if you think we should expect a large wound area on our dog(like the one shown for a nerve sheath tumor) given we successfully had the tumor surgically removed, and are now treating only the surrounding areas for possible remaining cancer cells?
Given we’ve already completed the surgery, and are now treating only for random remaining cancer cells, do you think we need a treatment as strong as Neoplasene? Or, would you suggest we wait on the Neoplasene and instead implement a course of the Big Five for a period of time – as well as other supplements you recommend, along with a whole food diet, and assume that will kill any remaining cells quickly before a tumor re-grows?
We’re open to risk – she’s healthy otherwise and only eight years old, but I’m wondering if we need to put her through some of the stronger treatment routes like radiation or Neoplasene if we can achieve remission through the supplements?
I am in the process of trying figure what my 10 yr. Old Golden Retriever has on her left back hock. It started out as a hard lump which developed visually within about 6 months. When I realized it had become the size of about a walnut I took her in to my vet and they did a test on the fluid. The result came up as having some suspicious cells and further testing needed to be done. I needed to wait about a 1-1/2 weeks to have a wedge biopsy done, but in the mean time the lump went wild. It spread to about a 2″ by 3″ inflamed lump that continually drained from several spots. I had the wedge biopsy done and that showed the lump to consist of scar tissue and infection. She doesn’t limp at all, but her leg quivers when you go to touch the area, or she thinks your going to touch it. So started the antibiotics and anti-inflamatories. 3 months later and a second opinion vet, were still fighting this. We just did a bacteria test, that ruled out a bacterial problem. Now were doing a urine test for some other kind of possibility. The area just keeps on draining, so is my wallet. Personally I think its some type of Osteosarcama, especially after doing some research, thats when I came upon this site and Neoplasene.
What do you think? Do you think that Neoplasene Salve could work for my Elsa. Please help.
Dear Renee,
I think the vets are on the right track. Sadly, re-biopsy may be needed. You don’t want to start treating for a cancer unless you know definitively that you have a cancer….sounds frustrating. Hang in there and best of luck,
Dr D
Dear Dr D,
My 4 yr old Neopolitan/English Mastiff cross, Napoleon, started oozing bloody mucus from his right nostril a little over a month ago so I took him in and had him scoped. The vet said that there was too much blood and mucus even after several flushings to be able to see what was going on up there.(if it was a tumor or foreign body). He also did an xray of a broken tooth to see if it had abscessed but it wasn’t. He started him on antibiotics and had taken a sample for a slide but I wasn’t able to afford to send it to the lab at that time. About 2 weeks after he finished the antibiotics, Napoleon had a SEVERE nosebleed.He sneezed out a tumor about the size of a large blueberry or cranberry and a bunch of huge clots. Every vet I talked to told me to ice pack it because that is all they would be able to do to it. Nappy, of course, wouldn’t let me do that and as he weighs 177.6 lbs I couldn’t force him to let me. After 5 hrs of non-stop steady bleeding ( I was terrified he was going to bleed out) I finally found a vet close by that agreed to sedate him and give him some epinephrine to stop the bleeding. He gave me ace pills and more epinephrine to take home to control the bleeding. I had taken the tumor with me for him to look at but he refused to look at it because it had been in the freezer and he said that had ruined it. Well I had hoped that the tumor he sneezed out was what had caused it all and prayed that he would heal up now. Well 3 1/2 weeks later he had another bad nosebeed and sneezed out another larger tumor with crystal rock like clusters on it and lots and lots of clots again. This has me pretty much convinced it is cancer. I had this tumor sent to the lab and should have the results this friday. I had taken pictures of the first nosebleed into the vet and he said he had never seen any animal have a nosebleed as severe as Nappy’s was. The enclosed porch where I kept him when he had it looks like a body had been dismembered there. The walls and floors were completely covered in blood. I had to keep bringing him old comforters so he had a dry place to lay down and he completely saturated 5 of them.The vet said he didn’t think after seeing the pictures that there would be any treatment that could help him at this point. Nappy seems to be in perfect health most days, really playful,eating normally but most nights he has a very hard time breathing and has to inhale through his mouth. He will sometimes start a really loud, deep, wet, rattling snore and when he wakes up after that he gags and retches alot. I have been giving him shortening mixed with honey and a vitamin supplement to soothe his throat when this happens. I know this scares him because although he has always been my shadow he now doesn’t want me out of his sight. He has become a lap dog whenever possible. I am desperate to find a way to help him and feel so helpless as he and I sit up all night and I listen to him struggle for air. I am currently unemployed due to lay-offs and because the extra costs Nappy’s size incurs for all procedures I can’t afford more scopings, surgery, chemo and radiation even if it would be a possible course of treatment.I am praying that the Neoplasene could help him. I don’t want him to suffer or put him through painful treatments that will just prolong his misery. I haven’t been able to find a vet locally or in the surrounding areas that has had experience with the sudden onset of such severe nosebleeds and they are stunned by the size of tumors he has sneezed out. I would be extremely grateful if you would allow me to email you the pics of the nosebleed and of the tumors he sneezed out and get your opinion. If you think there is a chance that the Neoplasene or if there is any other therapy/remedy/treatment you think could save my best friend. I don’t know what to expect with this illness and at what point to say he’s had enough. It’s breaking my heart and I don’t know what to do. Please, I need some advice and will anxiously await your reply.
Sincerely,
Jeannie Schmidt
For those interested in treatment with neoplasene, there is a good group on yahoo. Many of the pet owners there have prior experience using neoplasene and it is a good group for support and asking questions. It is Neoplasene_for-Cancer@yahoogroups.com.
By far the most problematic is using the neoplasene orally. It is an emetic meaning it makes the dog nauseous and many times the animal will eventually refuse to eat. Many owners put the neo in cream cheese or butter. Things like that. A lot of people have had to stop with the neo and resort to other remedies such as Avemar and artemsinin.
I would strongly suggest finding a vet with experience using neo. However, many owners convince their vets to order the neo for them sort of as a last resort, and often with a considerable amount of reluctance on the veterinarians part. Then when they encounter problems, the animal’s owner is sort of out there by themself.
These are all lay people and NOT veterinarians but it is a good group and it does help to have people that have been through this before.
Neoplasene, when it works, can seem truly miraculous. Just remember, there are also treatment failures. And Dr. Dressler is right. It is not for the faint of heart and can require a lot of committment, time, and stamina on the part of the owner.
Hope this helps and I wish all of you and your babies the best.
Well, my dog started having minor nosebleeds once every day or two about 3 weeks ago, and my dad, who is a ENT actually took a sample of a small mass up in her nose just today. We sent the mass to our vet, who scheduled a surgery and will look at the biopsy results to see what treatments to use for her. Once I found out what was up with her, I went on the internet to look things up and found out about the drug Neoplasene. She is 11, but is in good shape, and other than the recent start of nosebleeds she hasnt changed at all. Im just hoping our vet or some vet near us can give us some info on this drug.
Dr.Dressler, Our 5 1/2 year old female (spayed)Golden Retriever Josie was diagnosed with grade 3 mast cell cancer. She has had two surgeries. One tumor was excised from right inguinal fold and metastatic inguinal lymph node. Abdominal ultrasound reveals multiple enlarged (approximately 3×4 cm and 2×3 cm) lymph nodes in the cell lumbar region along with a generalized hypoechoic appearance to the liver. The spleen is of normal size and echogenicity. Thoracic radiographs are unremarkable. This info was from a report from the Oncologist who examined Josie on June 26. The evening of July 2nd I noticed Josies lower belly area, right side swelled up and the skin is a dark red color. July 3rd, A.M. we think she has another growth(tumor). July 1st we met with a Holistic vet and she suggested that we research neoplasene. Josie is on the raw diet from your book and she is currently getting supplements along with Transfer Factor Plus.I just learned of another product from 4life called Canine Immune Tabs. Are you familiar with this? Also,Josie still has a great appetite and two of her three surgical sites have healed and she is full of energy(I worry about the one that has not healed) . Is Josie a good candidate for Neoplasene? I am willing and able to care for Josie 24/7. Please advise. I have clinical reports if you want to see them from June 26th. Thank You for your time Donna Walker
Our 8 year old lab/shepherd mix is on Neoplasene for osteosarcoma. She has been on for 11 days and her tumor size has more than doubled as well as a great deal of swelling below the tumor. I know Neoplasene causes inflammation which is why no NSAIDS but how long before we can expect to see the inflammation begin decreasing?
Our dog Hannah has had episodes of severe nosebleeds in the past two years. We have been trying to manage her condition with epinephrine. She forms a clot and sneezes and dislodges the clot and the bleeding resumes. After administering the epinephrine, we keep her calm in her crate for a couple of days and she usually has a month or so before another episode. Vet would like to do a rhinoscopy to collect a sample of nasal cavity tissue to determine if she has a tumor or if she has a fungal infection. This is quite a costly procedure. If she has a tumor, we are told it is quite difficult to do surgery in the nasal cavity and to treat with radiation. Is Neoplasene a good option for nasal cancer?
Dear Celia,
it is critical to get a diagnosis first before contemplating any treatment for cancer. If your dog has something stuck in her nasal sinus, we could be missing the boat completely, or a fungal or bacterial infection.
As to the question of “good option”, it depends what you mean by that. For a cure? No. You would be well served I believe, if this does turn out to be a cancer, to get some information about how to go about making treatment decisions, defining what your priorities are, learning what the survival statistics actually mean, and what all of the different options are with respect to treating cancer, which are many more than oral Neoplasene, although we still in medicine do not have a cure for non-removable dog cancers. For cancer, I would certainly consider the dog cancer diet, apocaps, ongoing doxycyline, immune stimulants (beta glucans), finding out whether local depos of matrix 3 cisplatin impregnated beads could be used to help control the growth of cancer (if it is found), and even contemplation of radiation therapy. But you first need to decide what your priorities are, what the statistics are, and how you are going to budget your dog’s care if cancer is on the table.
I hope this helps…getting the data is step one…you could also find out if your vet is willing to do a sinus flush to try to get some cells out if cheaper than biopsy..
Best
D