Diet for Dogs With Mast Cell Tumors
Dr. Demian Dressler is internationally recognized as “the dog cancer vet” because of his innovations in the field of dog cancer management, and the popularity of his blog here at Dog Cancer Blog. The owner of South Shore Veterinary Care, a full-service veterinary hospital in Maui, Hawaii, Dr. Dressler studied Animal Physiology and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California at Davis before earning his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Cornell University. After practicing at Killewald Animal Hospital in Amherst, New York, he returned to his home state, Hawaii, to practice at the East Honolulu Pet Hospital before heading home to Maui to open his own hospital. Dr. Dressler consults both dog lovers and veterinary professionals, and is sought after as a speaker on topics ranging from the links between lifestyle choices and disease, nutrition and cancer, and animal ethics. His television appearances include “Ask the Vet” segments on local news programs. He is the author of The Dog Cancer Survival Guide: Full Spectrum Treatments to Optimize Your Dog’s Life Quality and Longevity. He is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Hawaii Veterinary Medical Association, the American Association of Avian Veterinarians, the National Animal Supplement Council and CORE (Comparative Orthopedic Research Evaluation). He is also an advisory board member for Pacific Primate Sanctuary.
Updated: December 6th, 2019
Friends,
Today’s post will likely be met with some skepticism from those immersed (and confined) to our Western medical approach. So if this is your framework, please keep an open mind. You will be pleased to know that the information here is taken from little known, but still Western, data banks.
I have recently been looking into some ways of decreasing some of the horrible effects of severe mast cell tumors in dogs. Lots of talk these days about Palladia, but there is more you can do!
As many of you are well aware, these cancers are able to release, on an intermittent basis, large amounts of chemical signals that produce nasty effects on the body. There are many different ones, and to avoid being utterly dull, here are just a few: histamine, substance P, and heparin.
The one which we have traditionally focused on is histamine. Histamine is the same stuff that our bodies, and those of our canine companions, release during an allergic reaction.
It does bad things like create swelling, redness, pain, blood pressure changes, vomiting, loss of appetite, acid stomach, and more.
Much of the sickness that dogs afflicted with mast cell tumors suffer from is caused by histamine excess.
Some focus has been placed on blocking the effects of histamine with various medications. However, very little has been placed on cutting off the body’s supply of histamine.
This is an intriguing and quite novel approach to dealing with histamine excess, and to my knowledge has not been tried in dogs. So here’s the info…give it a try, see if it helps the dog you love, and let our community know!
The basic story is you cut out foods that eventually end up increasing active histamine levels, by hook or by crook. Now, most of you know that carbohydrate restriction is important is helping with cancer generally. I discuss details of the dog cancer diet at length in the e-book, The Dog Cancer Survival Guide.
For more helpful tools and information, get a copy of the Dog Cancer Survival Guide
Here’s a new twist for those caring for a dog with a mast cell tumor diagnosis, especially the more aggressive ones (Grade 2 and 3).
Turns out there is some cutting edge new research going on in human medicine about ways to combat digestive upset, depression, anxiety, allergies, asthma, and more. Many cases of these syndromes involve excessive histamine effects in the body. There are very few diseases like mast cell tumors in people, but we humans do suffer from a close relative of mast cell tumors called systemic mastocytosis.
Anyway, those in the inner circle promote cutting off the wellspring of histamine in the body by simply not eating foods that promote histamine levels. Why not use a similar approach for dogs with mast cell tumors, another condition with histamine excess?
The biggies are those foods that are fermented as a part of processing. Dogs usually don’t eat or drink a lot of those (drinks with alcohol, the more “moldy” of the cheeses like blue, sauerkraut, and vinegar).
But…. there are some out there who feed their dogs tofu. Be careful! Practically speaking, tofu could be viewed as a histamine brick.
Another big no-no, if one were using this approach, is fish! Bacteria in the intestine of fish are quite busy making a lot of histamine, and levels rise after the fish passes away (but before the remains are gutted for food).
To learn more about Mast Cell Tumors, diet, and treatment options, get a copy of this seminar!
Dyes in food and the benzoates (BHT, BHA, sodium benzoate, benzoic acid) are also excluded from the diet. Read those labels!
Note that the items on the restricted list not only contain histamine, but also are more prone to causing mast cells to release their illness-causing histamine reserves. This only matters if there is a large mast cell burden (lots of tumor cells in the body) and we are wanting to lessen histamine release. In addition, this is all extrapolated from human information. The inappropriate human foods should be excluded from the dog diet even if the list says they are “ok”.
I hope this helps-
Best,
Dr D
Dr. Demian Dressler is internationally recognized as “the dog cancer vet” because of his innovations in the field of dog cancer management, and the popularity of his blog here at Dog Cancer Blog. The owner of South Shore Veterinary Care, a full-service veterinary hospital in Maui, Hawaii, Dr. Dressler studied Animal Physiology and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California at Davis before earning his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Cornell University. After practicing at Killewald Animal Hospital in Amherst, New York, he returned to his home state, Hawaii, to practice at the East Honolulu Pet Hospital before heading home to Maui to open his own hospital. Dr. Dressler consults both dog lovers and veterinary professionals, and is sought after as a speaker on topics ranging from the links between lifestyle choices and disease, nutrition and cancer, and animal ethics. His television appearances include “Ask the Vet” segments on local news programs. He is the author of The Dog Cancer Survival Guide: Full Spectrum Treatments to Optimize Your Dog’s Life Quality and Longevity. He is a member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Hawaii Veterinary Medical Association, the American Association of Avian Veterinarians, the National Animal Supplement Council and CORE (Comparative Orthopedic Research Evaluation). He is also an advisory board member for Pacific Primate Sanctuary.
Dr. Dressler,
My 8 year old Puggle was just diagnosed with a Mast cell tumor on her paw. Her toe was removed and biopsied and came back as a Stage 2 with lymph involvement. She went in for her second round of surgery to remove the affected lymph and tighten the margins of the toe. I am waiting on your book to arrive in the mail. In the meantime, while she recovers I want to switch up her diet. Reason being, she starts chemo in a few weeks. I don’t want to upset her stomach and confuse the doctors by switching her food when she starts chemo. She is currently eating “Prairie” dog food. We change the flavor occasionally but never get the salmon because it stinks so that’s good! I am noticing not only Prairie but many dog foods contain the no no’s on the list you have provided. Mainly the fruits and vegies. Prairie has almost all of the vegies and fruits described as histamine releasers in the no column. Honest kitchen has a lot of these ingredients as well. I am willing to cook for her and do whatever I can. However I am feeling overwhelmed! I need more direction. HELP!
Hello Britt (and Puggle),
I know it’s overwhelming, but take a deep breath. You’ve caught it, and you’ve got a treatment plan. Smart to get started on nutrition now… well done. Until the book arrives, you can go to http://www.dogcancerblog.com, and underneath the blue arrow on the right is a place you can get an instant download of most of the dog cancer diet. To get mor especific info about histamine foods, there is a blog article at https://www.dogcancerblog.com/blog/diet-for-dogs-with-mast-cell-tumors/#.UxSTAvTV_X0 (you can find it on the blog as “Diet for Dogs With Mast Cell Tumors” which lists more specifics. In the last paragraph of the blog post on histamine foods, there is another link to a chart of human foods, which pertains to dogs. I know this is a lot of linking, but I think it would be better for you to read the blog article and go to the chart. Although the blog says this, remember that even if a food (like a sugar) is on the human chart as being OK for a histamine situation, that food is not OK for a dog with cancer. You have homework to do, but I promise it will be worth it. For further help with commercial foods, check out http://www.dogcancershop.com and go to the “Quality Dog Foods” tab. There are some wonderful brands you can choose from… check out Halo… several options and you should be able to find an ingredient list in the description.
I’ve loaded you with a lot, but I’ve had two dogs with cancer, and at this stage, you need a lot 🙂 But you need those Puggle cuddles as well, and the quality time to sit together and love each other and talk about getting through this together. Explain things to her as you go. Let us know if you need any other help along the way. All the best!
Karen,
I have decided to go with Honest Kitchen as I have had no luck finding dog foods that don’t contain the list of “no” foods. I have one more question. I bought NUPRO “lyfe spyce” supplements and one of the listed ingredients is fermented soy. I have read so much about soy being bad for cancer dogs. Is fermented soy ok?!
Hi Karen, I’d skip it. Soy is not easily digested by dogs, but further, anything fermented is not advised for dogs with MCT. Can you return it?
I can return it. The reason I bought it is because it was turmeric and mushroom based. The soy was the one thing throwing me off. Thanks for the tip!
This was my post, I did my research and decided soy lecithin was OK in Apocaps, and have now replied to Tracie’s post above also if anyone’s interested. 🙂
Billy, I apologize for the delay. The link was indeed broken, and we had to replace it with a new, appropriate reference. I hope the edited information helps. All the best.
Where is the list that you refer to in this article, list of histamine causing foods?
Dr. Dressler,
I know you are busy, however, we have a little pug girl who needs help. We adopted her a little over 2 years ago and she means everything to us – she has been through so much in her little life span that this news we are getting is so hard to hear. We adopted her knowing she had special needs – she was rescued out of a hoarding house, where she was used for breeding despite the severity of her orthopedic conditions. She has the most severe orthopedic conditions (bi-lateral hip displaysia, bi-lateral luxating patellas, spondylosis : all beyond grade 4, severe alignment issues from not developing and growing properly, as well as osteoarthritis. She just turned 4. She is the happiest little girl and compensates so well for all that is going on with her. When she first came here we took her immediately to the University Hospital to one of the best Orthopedic Specialists and he agreed surgery was not in her best interest – we were to medically manage her with medications and supplements. Time after time we were told by Vets not to waste our money, PT and other things would not help her remain mobile, keep her on the rimadyl and not to worry too much about supplements – it was frustrating. One vet even told us that this would be her demise if she didn’t get something terminal, like cancer. Well, we are facing cancer with her now. We accidentally stumbled onto a card of a veterinarian who does acupuncture, traditional forms of therapies, but also works with natural supplements as well. She comes to work with her monthly, got her off of the rimadyl, placed her on Herbsmith Chinese Joint supplements/herbals, had to keep her on daily tramadol (she does have some pain) – however, she has continued to grow and has come so far. She is walking faster, even running at times, keeping her footing on slicker forms of tile, up more and playing more. Her orthopedic specialist saw her a year later and could not believe is was her – he said whatever we were doing to continue it – she had a little movement in her hind legs again(which they thought would never happen) and the vet and orthopedic specialist knew each other so that made things a lot easier. We were also feeding her fish based foods, as well as salmon oil.
Our little girl came to us with a really odd spot on her inner thigh. I asked everyone about this spot and I was told that it was a scar from the situation she grew up in. I went through 4 vets and her specialist and all told us the same thing. I feel terrible. Then my husband hears that and keeps telling me not to worry – everyone says it is a scar – she came from really bad situation, etc.
Then, a few months ago two spots show up on her L and R hock – identical and in identical places. Again, it was thought she rubs her heels together a lot – but then these grew pretty fast, so aspirating them took place. First round we were told most likely benign, however, the lab would like to do another free of charge. The repeated one came back positive for mast cell and we were sent to specialist. The specialist then aspirated the other two – the L hock and the right inner thigh I had always questioned along the way – the results: R hock and R inner thigh are definitely mast cell tumors and the L hock was inconclusive, however, they highly suspect it is one.
The protocol at that time was to begin her on Vinblastine to try and shrink them, so then they could surgically remove them. She was told to take pepcid (or an acid reducer), prednisone (which was a large dose starting off and she could not handle this – she is now down to 1/4 tab daily, but does so much better when that is every other day), 1/2 tab benadryl daily, her chemo, and her usual – tramadol, Herbsmith entire Joint line supplements/herbals, salmon oil.
The location of the mast cells are really bad for her – on those hind leg areas right almost on her heels – amputation is not an option for her due to her severe orthopedic conditions. We began with Vinblastine and after one week it looked promising. We did 2 or 3 injections and then the specialist said that they were not shrinking as he liked, so we then went to Palladia. He gave us 2 weeks worth of this. She did alright with week one, however week two was extremely rough for her and another lump appeared on her face area while on the Palladia – Mon Oct 28 the new spot appeared. She also was not herself at all that second week – she was not getting out of her bed, she was not responding to much at all – she did not go outside to the bathroom for over 24 hrs and after that it was just a little here and there early in the AM and that was all, she had sudden onset of bad breath, she sounded awful in her breathing (and this is something we still struggle with – she sounds crackly/nasallyl a lot louder than normal and pants heavily). He told us to stop the Palladia Friday Nov 1 – with it being every other day her last dose was then Wed. By Fri. night she began getting up a little more, going outside, etc and by Sat/Sun she was herself again.
We went back in on Mon. her new spot tested positive for another mast cell. He gave us another chemo medication (chlorambucil) to try for 5 days and then would like to put her through to surgery early than expected. There was an ultrasound done at the start of all of this and nothing had spread internally. He checks her lymphnodes when she is there every time. He told mw I was very quiet – but I was in shock that another one had come up and just upset, all I could say was blood work, she needs blood work. The blood work came back and they said all of that kidneys, liver, WBC, RBC, platelets, etc all look great – that just looking at blood work alone you would never know she had cancer because it all looks wonderful.
She is restless at times, pants hard and a lot, crackly breathing – I told then they have to check her upper airway before any surgery – she is a pug and there are issues sometimes with airways.
I am also upset – we fed her fish based foods for her joints and I now read how horrible that is for MCT’s. We need dietary advice or supplement advice – something to help her fight through this. She has so much going on and I think these MCT’s are not going to stay away from her if one popped up while she was on chemo treatments.
We have other pugs – our other little girl we rescued just started having focal seizures. We think a lot of the “nervous” behaviors may be seizure activity, or neurological symptoms. We could use advice, help, assistance, support – anything. We want her to live a long life – she has come so far and is such a brave little girl. It just breaks our heart. She is just the sweetest. Thank you for your time and I am so sorry this is so long.
Chrissy
Please respond to the question about Soy Lecithin. This is not only a concern of mine but others as well. My initial questions was posted Oct 5 2012. There has been no response to this question.
Hi Tracie,
unfortunately this is a question with a significant amount of misinformation being circulated. It started when a chiropractor, without a veterinary license, began to give medical advise concerning dog cancer, and unfortunately a lack of actual clinical experience in real veterinary practices and appropriate medical training may yield some unfortunate and incorrect conclusions. The short story is this: soy contains phytoestrogens. There is concern about the endocrine disrupting effect of some of these compounds (which is discussed in The Dog Cancer Survival Guide, and on this blog at times), as there may be a link between these compounds and human breast cancer, among other things. An interesting tidbit however is that there are also soy containing compounds such as genistein and diadzen that have quite a lot of published cancer fighting effects.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12549765
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14628433
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18492603
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20404023
etc etc. this list could go on for quite some time.
At any rate, the concern here is very low, as the actual lecithin content is very low, but also that there are aspects of the molecule that aid the apoptogens potency in the body. There have been no known cases of Apocaps causing tumors, in spite of over 6000 dogs using this supportive strategy. I hope this answers your question… 🙂 Best, Dr D
Hi – I’m waiting to buy Apocaps but also want further information on why soy lecithin has been included, as asked by Tracie Oct 5 2012. Hoping you have time to respond soon. Thank you for all your research and dedication to help us Guardians help our beloved dogs.
Dear Dr. Dressler,
If certain food contain histamines such as cranberries for example, Does the extract also contain histamines? If so are histamine in the extract at a higher concentration then the actual food?
Thanks
I was a breeder of Goldens but have stopped due to MCT, among other cancers, were found in our line. Right now, there are three siblings 7.5 yrs of age that have been diagnoised with MCT GRADE 2 with mitotic index of 1 or lower. I have had the whole pack on food with fish and fish oil to help with their joints. I have not done chemo or radation to date and am considering it. We went through all of that with their grand mother years ago.
My concern now is the diet. Please advise.
Dr. Dressler,
If certain food contain histamines such as cranberries for example, Does the extract also contain histamines? If so are histamine in the extract at a higher concentration then the actual food?
Thanks