Dog Cancer Treatment Options For Dogs Diagnosed with Cancer

There is nothing quite as devastating for dog owners than hearing that their beloved family dog has cancer. Just like humans; animals too can develop cancers and tumors. Detecting the signs of cancer early on and using various dog cancer treatments offers your dog the best options regarding being cured from this extremely deliberating disease.

As there is a wide assortment of cancers; discussing the various dog cancer treatments available is equally important as different treatments work best on specific types of cancer. Your vet will formulate a specific dog cancer treatment plan which is uniquely designed for your pet because each pet responds differently to the various cancer treatment options available.

Surgery: The most effective dog cancer treatment used to cure cancer in your dog is definitely surgery but as it’s difficult to completely remove tumors which have spread to other sections of your dogs body. This spreading to secondary sites is known as the process of metastasis. A dog suffering from bone cancer or osteosarcoma may require having the effected limb amputated. The response or effectiveness of surgery depends upon several factors including the location of the cancer, metastasis levels and of course the pets over all state of health. Your vet may prefer to use other dog cancer treatments including new drugs, chemotherapy and/or radiation treatments to treat or eradicate the cancer.

Antiangiogenic Therapy Drugs: Innovative new dog cancer drugs called antiangiogenic therapy drugs selectively interrupt the blood supply to the cancer essentially starving the tumors and preventing further growth. A combination treatment of antiangiogenic inhibitor medications may be combined thereby attacking multiple targets simultaneously to improve the effectiveness of the treatment. As these drugs are quite nontoxic and are successful at doses well below the maximum tolerated dose these can be administered in lower doses over a longer period of time. Sure it may take longer to initially become effective but it does give continuous cancer control to your pet.

Because chemotherapy and radiotherapy indiscriminately attacks all dividing cells within the body there is an increased chance of your dog experiencing several side effects including diarrhea, hair loss, mouth ulcers and a general weakened immunity. The specific dog cancer drugs or antiangiogenic drugs on the other hand selectively target dividing blood vessels which means fewer side effects.

Chemotherapy: Just as in humans; chemotherapy is also the most common form of cancer treatment for your dog. This term although frightening to most people dealing with cancer simply means: ”therapy using medications”. Unlike humans most dogs do not suffer the full extent of side effects associated with this type of treatment. Generally; only a small percentage experience vomiting, nausea, diarrhea, a lack of appetite and/or perhaps a slight fever. With regard to hair loss; some may lose merely a few whiskers with very little hair loss occurring.

Radiation: This type of cancer treatment involves exposing a radioactive beam to affected regions which then kills the cancerous cells. It is certainly effective but is in no way an absolute cure but is rather used alongside surgery and chemotherapy. Radiation treatment is best for treating cancers that have not yet spread and your dog will require a general anesthesia for this procedure. It may also considerably diminish the size of some cancers. The side effects in pets are quite different than in humans, with little chance of nausea and tiredness but will result in a lesion similar to sunburn at the radiation site accompanied by some itchiness.

Finally: Your vet may advise that it may be kinder to opt for a good quality of life for your dog in preference to commencing a potentially stressful course of treatment. Of course this will probably mean a shorter life expectancy for your beloved pet dog.