Chemotherapy
Analysis Paralysis With Dog Cancer
When faced with a dog cancer diagnosis, many guardians experience an immediate sense of overwhelm. Of course, there is profound anger, sadness, numbness, grief, and the whole array of different responses to crises news. After a time, treatment options arise. And the facts are that modern medicine in many cases does not provide options that…
Read ArticleThe Oncologist’s Perspective on Statistics: Part Two
In last week’s post, Statistics Part One, I discussed why statistics can be very helpful to the pet Guardian. And while stats are an important part on oncology, my years in practice highlight their limitations. So before we dive into some common statistical terms (in my next blog), I think it is important to remember…
Read ArticleGenetic Testing for Cancer Treatments Studied
An article in the Wall Street Journal yesterday discussed genetic testing dogs afflicted with cancer . These tests could help develop individualized treatments for human patients. The good news is that indirectly, our loved dogs will likely benefit from this work. The reason for the research is that in many cases chemotherapy does little to…
Read ArticleOsteosarcoma, Cisplatin and Magnesium
Low magnesium may be a threat for dogs receiving chemotherapy. Magnesium is a mineral in the body that is needed for proper functioning of over 300 different enzyme systems. A study was done on critically ill dogs, and over half were found to have low magnesium. Low magnesium levels increase the risk of toxic reactions…
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The Oncologist’s Perspective on Chemotherapy and Low White Blood Cell Counts: Part 3
Extremely low white blood cell counts and sepsis are rare side effects of chemotherapy that require immediate and urgent care.
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The Oncologist’s Perspective on Chemotherapy and Low White Blood Cell Counts: Part 2
There are specific tests oncologists use for white blood cell counts before, during and after chemotherapy. Find out what tests your dog has to have to stay healthy during treatment.
Read ArticleRight and Wrong In Dog Cancer
When coping with a diagnosis of canine cancer, many guardians worry about decisions they are making. Often there does not seem to be a “right” answer. Similarly, when learning about topics in cancer treatment, we may have a tendency to categorize as “good” and “bad”. An important fact of dog cancer, and many medical topics,…
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The Oncologist’s Perspective on Chemotherapy and Low White Blood Cell Counts: Part 1
Chemotherapy and Low White Blood Cell Counts: how important are these low counts? How do they impact your dog’s cancer treatments?
Read ArticleNot All Soft Lumps are Lipomas!
Many times dog lovers will be told that their dog’s soft lump is a fatty tumor, and is no problem. The veterinarian is usually thinking about lipomas, benign tumors made of fat that may be genetic in dogs. This information is not always correct, and sometimes the mistake is life threatening. Although it is true…
Read ArticleThe Oncologist’s Perspective on Chemotherapy and Gastrointestinal (GI) side effects: Part Two
In my last blog post, I told you that most vomiting and diarrhea associated with chemotherapy was mild and could be managed at home. Unfortunately, there are exceptions. Typically if your dog is vomiting, you will be instructed to hold on food and water to rest the GI tract for 12 to 24 hours. But…
Read ArticleThe Oncologist’s Perspective on Chemotherapy and Gastrointestinal (GI) side effects: Part One
Obviously, you are concerned about your dog having side effects from chemotherapy. No one including me, the oncologist, wants your dog to get sick. Chemotherapy targets rapidly dividing cancer cells. However, there are normal cells in the body that also rapidly divide as part of their normal function. It is these cells that can be…
Read ArticleLymphoma – what you need to know BEFORE you see the oncologist
In my last blog post on lymphoma, I shared that I would personally treat my dog with a multi-agent chemotherapy protocol if she was diagnosed with lymphoma. You will learn a lot about diagnostics and treatment options once you meet an oncologist, so in this blog post, I will share some of the things you…
Read ArticleHow to Get A Diagnosis Before Surgery
There are several different ways of finding out if a lump is a cancer. Each involves having some of the growth tested, but which is best? There are several ways to collect a sample. Often a biopsy is done. A biopsy involves collecting a piece of the growth for analysis. Sometimes the growth is removed…
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What I Would Do for My Dog with Lymphoma
What would a veterinarian oncologist do for her dog with lymphoma? Dr. Susan Ettinger tells us how she would handle this dread disease.
Read ArticlePrednisone for Dog Cancer
Cortisone drugs have a bad rap. Pharmaceuticals like prednisone, prednisolone, dexamethasone, budesonide, and triamcinolone are drugs in the cortisone family. And over the years these medications have achieved much attention as bad chemicals. This is very likely due to what could be described as overuse. These drugs of have historically been prescribed for a wide…
Read ArticlePremature Fatty Acid Media Frenzy
A recent Dutch study has been published that is creating a large media ripple and alarm concerning the use of fatty acid supplements and cancer. The study showed that two specific fatty acids, when used in mice and in-vitro (in cells in a laboratory), can interfere with the effects of chemotherapy drugs. These fatty acids…
Read ArticleCCNU Use for Lympho Rescue Protocols
Chemotherapy in dogs is used differently than in people. In people, there are protocols that might in some cases eliminate the cancer for many years. In dogs though, the cancer usually comes back, many times in months. (For this reason, we use a wide variety of treatments above and beyond chemotherapy in the Guide). However,…
Read ArticleLow Dose Chemotherapy and Cancer
Over the last few years, there has been much work in attempting to improve canine cancer treatment. One strategy has been to use lower, continuous doses of oral chemotherapy drugs. The goal in this is to lessen chemotherapy toxicity, reduce trips to the oncologist for IV injections (the medications are pills), and hopefully gaining life…
Read ArticleCritical Question when Weighing Dog Cancer Chemotherapy Options
Many Guardians are faced with difficult decisions when facing a dog cancer diagnosis. One of the toughest is whether to choose a treatment that seems more aggressive than others. A guardian should first get an idea of whether the expectation of the treatment is worse than the treatment. Many times dogs receiving chemotherapy treatment do…
Read ArticleChemosensitizers
We need longer life expectancies in dogs with cancer. When guardians hear the statistics about dog cancer survival, they are often shocked at how grim things sound. And to be honest, they are grim. For this reason, we need to start looking “outside the box” of existing conventional cancer care. This was one of the…
Read ArticleAn Overview of What Else Can I Do?
The most common question I receive is: My dog has cancer. What else can I do? Well, this is a very short question that needs a very long answer. I will do my best to give the big categories here. First, get the data you need. A real guardian needs information to make aware decisions. …
Read ArticleWhy Rescue Chemotherapy Is Not As Good
Cancer cells are really quite amazing, but not in a good way. They have these little pumps in their outer wall (the cell membrane). They go by a couple of different names, but the easiest one to remember is MDR. MDR stands for Multi-Drug Resistance. The reason these pumps are so amazingly bad is that…
Read ArticleTo Chemo or Not To Chemo?
One of the little known facts about veterinary medicine is that chemotherapy does not cure cancer in dogs, with few exceptions (except transmissible venereal tumor or the very rare lympho or something). I believe that many people are unaware of this fact. So we are left with a treatment modality that has a goal of…
Read ArticleFight Cancer With Local Chemotherapy
Many dog lovers hear grim survival statistics after receiving a dog cancer diagnosis, and it is extremely overwhelming. So much so that they go on a search for new and innovative ways to get better odds, longer survival times, and better life quality. Well, the same thing happened to me! Why settle for stats that…
Read ArticleMetronomic Chemotherapy
Traditional chemotherapy is moving in a new direction. In the past, chemotherapy used a strategy called Maximum Tolerated Dose (MTD). Simply put, this is giving the highest dose a patient can handle, ideally without an unacceptable risk of side effects. The reason this strategy is used in cancer medicine is that the drugs we have…
Read ArticleWhat is Treatment Plan Analysis?
Imagine you want to spend some time somewhere. Maybe the mountains, maybe the city…it is time for a trip. There are many ways to get there. Perhaps having as much time as possible there is your main goal. Maybe you drive at breakneck speed to get there, wasting no time, and extend your time there…
Read ArticleMagnesium and Dog Cancer
The strategy of Full Spectrum Care is used in the Dog Cancer Survival Guide to take advantage of anything that is safe and effective to get an edge on dog cancer. This means we have to look not only at chemo, radiation and surgery, but also on all those other things that might help a…
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