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Treating Cancer Different cancers respond to different treatments. Before a treatment plan can be made for an individual dog. The cancer must be precisely identified, usually through a biopsy; the extent and possible spread of the cancer must be evaluated, often through x-rays and lymph node or bone marrow biopsies; and the dog’s general health and ability to tolerate the proposed treatment must be assessed via a thorough physical exam blood tests, and sometimes an electrocardiogram (EKG) or ultrasound exam of the heart. Here is an explanation of those treatments, the principles behind them, and their potential side effects. Surgery. Cancer that consists of a single tumor or it restricted to a small area of the body can often be removed surgically. The main drawback of surgery as a treatment for cancer is that you can’t be certain it will be remove every single cancer cell from the dogs body, so there’s a possibility that the cancer could recur in the future. Potential adverse side effects: Bleeding and anesthetic complications during surgery; postsurgical infection; postsurgical pain; possible loss of function of affected areas. Postsurgical pain can be treated safely and effectively and need not be considered a deterrent to surgery. The risk of the other complications is low with most surgeries and can be estimated more precisely for a specific dog and procedure by the veterinary surgeon. Chemotherapy. Chemotherapy uses drugs o kill or damage rapidly dividing cells. It is used to treat blood-cell cancers, such as lymphoma and leukemia, and cancers that have metastasized or are highly aggressive and likely to metastasized. These drugs are may be given orally or intravenously, or injected directly into the tumor. Cancer cells can develop resistance to individual chemotherapy drugs, so often several different drugs are used in rotation. Chemotherapy usually lasts 6 to 12 weeks. Intravenous chemotherapy drugs are given in the hospital anywhere from once every 3 weeks to twice a week, depending on the drug and the cancer being treated. Oral chemotherapy drugs are given at home once or twice a day. Potential adverse side effects: Bone-marrow suppression leading to reduced numbers of white blood cells and a risk of infection, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea; severe chemical burns if IV chemotherapy drugs leak from the vein into surrounding tissues. (Individual chemotherapy agents may have other, specific side effects which your veterinarian will explain.) Bone Marrow suppression is monitored by running blood tests periodically while a dog is undergoing chemotherapy. If white blood cell levels drop low enough to create a risk of serious infection, chemotherapy is halted for a week or two to allow the bone marrow to catch up in cell production. Antibiotics also can be given to combat infection. Dogs undergoing chemotherapy usually don’t develop the severe nausea and vomiting that people sometimes do, but anti-nausea drugs and stomach protectants are given if needed. Dogs rarely lose their hair as a result of chemotherapy. Radiation. Radiation kills cancer cells by bombarding them with automatic particles. It is often used to shrink or destroy tumors that are too extensive or inaccessible for surgery, such as tumors of the mouth and throat, nasal passages, or brain, Radiation treatments are given two to five times a week for three to six weeks. Dogs receive a short acting anesthetic before each treatment to ensure that they don’t move once the radiation beam has been precisely aimed at the tumor. Potential adverse side effects: Burnlike injuries to normal tissues overlaying the tumor; temporary hair loss in the area radiated; mouth pain, drooling, difficulty eating, and loss of appetite when the mouth or throat are radiated. Radiation “burns” are cleaned and protected with a bandage or ointment and usually heal well within a couple of weeks. Mouth pain, drooling, and loss of appetite are treated mouth rinses and pain relievers; a feeding tube can be placed in the stomach before radiation treatment begins if the dog is likely to have difficulty eating. Mouth irritation usually heals within a couple of weeks after radiation treatment is completed. Cryotherapy and Hyperthermia. Freezing (cryotherapy)or heating (hyperthermia) can sometimes be used to kill small (less then 1/3 inch in diameter) benign or malignant tumors on the surface of the body. Potential advantages of cryotherapy and hyperthermia over surgery are that they are fast and require only local anesthesia. The main drawback is they will not kill cancer cells that have spread beyond the small area frozen or heated. Chemotherapy or radiation is sometimes used afterward to kill stray cancer cells. Potential adverse side effects: Cryotherapy and hyperthermia leave a wound about double the size of the original tumor that scabs and heals’ with normal wound care (cleaning and ointment or bandage), within about two weeks. The hair in that area may grow back a different color or texture than it was originally. Immune-system modulators. A dog’s own white blood cells will attack and kill cancer cells-IF they find them and recognize them as a threat. Immune-system motors are substances given orally or by injection that rev up the immune system and help it to recognize and target cancer cells. The main drawback is that a dog’s immune system is unlikely to be able to kill every tumor cell in a cancer that has already gotten a head start. Therefore, immune-system modulators are most often combined with other cancer treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation. Potential adverse side effects: These vary with the specific modulator. Some have no adverse side effects. Canine oncology is a relatively new field in Veterinary medicine with most of the nation’s veterinary schools only focused on it at the beginning of 2000. There is also the sense by pet owners, unspoken but VERY REAL, that a dog with cancer is incurable. Oftentimes the only solution offered is euthanasia and this has to be stopped. To add to the general cause of this perception is the lack of cancer treatments, cancer centers and overall knowledge of the disease by veterinarians, not to even mention the lack of knowledge and belief in holistic treatments. Do to the comparison to human cancer treatments, many owners and veterinarians view cancer treatment for dogs as possibly worse than the disease itself. BUT, this is a mistake. Canine oncologists say human and canine treatments are not parallel. In dogs, most patients are older and not always given opportunity for treatment as most owners are not aware of the many treatment options and have not been educated on the tools that are available in canine oncology whether traditional or holistic. From a holistic perspective, cancer is the ultimate manifestation of imbalance. A healthy immune system is compromised or weak and unhealthy cells are able to produce and grow unchecked, replacing normal cells causing the cancer. Conventional vets generally agree that a physical malfunction permits cancer to grow and spread, the traditional cures and treatments for cancer are: surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and advanced medicines. The holistic vet reasons that just as the body created the cancer, it can eliminate it. All that said, oncology is an area where many holistic vets and traditional vets come together and work on the cause from various angles and directions. The more we attack the disease in all directions, the better the success. In many cases, the disease cannot be treated, but the symptoms and side effects of the disease. With traditional vets and holistic vets, you might need to seek out second and may be third and fourth opinions before you find the correct regimen. Many traditional vets are simply not equipped to treat cancer and you may have to travel to specialized practices. Cancer treatment for humans is an inexact science and with dogs the map is no clearer. The treatments you pursue will depend on the individual dog, the type and stage of cancer, your financial situation, your emotional commitment and aggression. You need to do your homework and research having options and doing something is better than doing nothing. Conventional Cancer Treatment There are three major approaches to traditional treatments: 1. surgery: the simplest solution for dealing with cancer, but often the most impractical since many cancers are not well defined. Since a vet cannot always determine all the cancer has been removed, a second treatment might be necessary to continue treatment with radiation or chemotherapy. 2. radiation: a suggested treatment when cancers have not spread or to clean up areas that surgery cannot complete. Treatments are broken up in fractionalized doses over a scheduled period of time. There are aggressive and palative treatment protocols that you oncologist will design based on the cancer and and use of radiation. 3. chemotherapy: once cancer has spread and is no longer localized, chemotherapy is often protocol. Chemotherapy drugs selectively target rapidly dividing cancer cells and don’t have as powerful effect of normal cells; therefore, the most effective time for chemotherapy is when the tumor is small, just removed or minimized allowing the goal of chemotherapy to kill the greatest number of cancer cells left in the body. Please see your conventional vet for your pet’s protocol. For more Conventional Cancer therapies: The Veterinary Cancer Society The Perseus Foundation Morris Animal Foundation Credit: Most of the above information taken from, The Holistic Dog Book, by Denise Flaim More about cancer and cancer procedures LETS BE CLEAR: A diagnosis of cancer in not an automatic death sentence. One of the cardinal lessons of veterinary medicine is that you can’t identify cancer just by looking at it. Cancer is a disease if individual cells, and you can’t see cells with the naked eye. Cancer can also spread silently from one site to another, so when a growth is diagnosed as malignant, the rest of the body needs to be scanned for signs of the invader. Here are the test commonly used to diagnose cancer, and what veterinarians are looking for with each of them. Biopsy. A biopsy s a sample of growth or organ that is examined microscopically by a veterinary pathologist to diagnose cancer and other diseases, such as infections. The biopsy sample may be a small snippet of tissue that was removed specifically to obtain a diagnosis, or it may be an entire mass or lymph node that was removed surgically and is checked throughout for cancer cells. If the outer edges, or margins, of a mass contain cancer cells, than another surgery may be required to remove more of the surrounding tissue, or chemotherapy or radiation may be recommended to kill any remaining cancer cells. Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is a simple type of biopsy in which a needle is inserted into a lump or lymph node and a syringe is used to with draw a droplet of the contents to be examined for cancer cells A lymph-node biopsy is the removal and examination of an entire lymph node to check for metastasis (the spread) of cancer from its original site of lymphoma (cancer of the lymph nodes). A bone-marrow biopsy is used to check for leukemia and other cancers of the blood cells Blood tests. There is no specific “blood test for cancer.” Rather, vets use different blood tests to assess the dog’s overall health and to look for signs that cancer mat be affecting various organs. These signs can include high calcium, low glucose, low red blood cell counts, and high kidney or liver values. X-rays. Chest x-rays are used to look for primary lung tumors (cancer that originates in the lungs) or lung metastases (the spread of cancer from another site to the lungs). X-rays of bones are used to look for changes characteristic of primary bone cancer or cancer that has spread to bones form another site. Abdominal x-rays will sometimes reveal an obvious tumor or an enlarged spleen, liver, or other abdominal organ, exploratory surgery, or other diagnostic procedure is required to reveal cancer within the abdomen. Ultrasound Exam. An ultrasound exam gives a clearer picture of abdominal structures than x-rays can and is better at finding tumors, swellings, fluid accumulation, and other abnormalities with in the abdomen. Ultrasound also can be used to guide biopsy s taken with large-diameter needles through the abdominal wall. (A dog is anesthetized briefly for an ultrasound-guided biopsy, so the procedure is not painful.) Endoscopy. An endoscope is a tiny video camera on a thin, flexible tube that can be inserted into the nasal passages, trachea, esophagus, stomach, or intestines of an anesthetized dog to look for masses, bleeding, and other problems. Biopsies can be obtained through the endoscopy tube. Exploratory Surgery. Cutting a dog open may seem like a drastic way to arrive at a diagnosis, but in certain instances, surgery is the best or only way to find out what is wrong with a dog who’s severely ill. Examples include a dog who arrives at a veterinary clinic in shock and is discovered to have blood in his abdomen and a mass on his spleen; or a middle aged dog who has had persistent vomiting, blood in the vomit, and weight loss, and for whom an ultrasound exam or endoscopy was inconclusive. Computed Tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. CT or MRI scans for dogs are available at many veterinary-school and referral hospitals. They are useful for revealing the precise outlines of tumors in areas of the body that are surrounded by bone or air (such as the brain, spinal chord, and lungs), which don’t show up as well on x-rays or ultrasound. Holistic — it’s the latest, greatest buzzword Forget Either/Or Just because you want to consider holistic care for your dog it doesn’t mean you must abandon conventional veterinary care or disregard sound medical advice. Be Active/Not Reactive A lot of people become interested in holistic concepts in the face of a crisis. When a dog becomes very ill, and conventional medicine is unable to provide a tidy solution, desperation prompts people on to open-mindedness. This is typically how most people discover raw food diets. Your dog has allergies, which don’t go away or get even worse with age. Allergy testing is inconclusive. After trying antihistamines and fatty-acid supplements, the only remaining course of treatment is cortisone shots. You start surfing the internet and asking around for a solution; and you are given a nutrition solution. Desperation makes you more willing to take a plunge and try new ideas. Think For Yourself Conventional medicine, whether human or animal, has conditioned us to see doctors and veterinarians as omniscient. Medical professionals make mistakes, just as we do, but when we are in a position of needing help, we want to have an authority figure to turn to and tell us what to do or blame. You, your pet’s caretaker, is the most important ingredient in the equation. You are your dog’s advocate, so ask questions. When Not To Think As important as it is to think, it’s just as important to know when not to think. Conventional medicine loves facts and data, anythingk that ca be explained by a chart or controlled study. Some things in life are intuitive, not logical. Some things can be known but not proven. Many things in holistic medicine have been proven by experience not by modern medicine. Don't Be Overwhelmed Or Give Into Fear Some people avoid complementary medicine or holistic medicines for their dog because they are afraid of it. This fear comes from not understanding the theories behind a particular modality or treatment approach; fear can also come from change and the departing form what society has taught us and try something new and different. Once you see success, it will be easier to make changes and take risks. Follow your common sense and your heart. Nutrition Food is about love and nurturing; so we need to know the best way to feed our animal companions. The meal plan you choose may depend on several factors, resources, your time and your pet and their individual needs. Raw Diet Raw food diets for dogs have become trendy and have proven to be the best delivery of nutrients. The basic theory behind raw diets is domesticated dogs are markedly different from their progenitors, raw meat eaters. Take a look inside a dog’s mouth. The big teeth are not there for show. They are there to rip and tear and crunch flesh and bones. Dogs have short digestive tracts with powerful enzymes for dealing with harmful bacteria, allowing all the nutrients of raw food to benefit the whole dog. The benefits of a raw diet are: 1. enhanced immune system and reduced allergic reactions; 2. increased hydration; 3. smaller volume of stool; 4. fewer anal gland problems; 5. less of a doggy smell; 6. cleaner teeth; 7. fewer ear infections; 8. bloat management. The risks of a raw diet are: 1. parasites and bacteria (serve fresh and soak in grapefruit extract); 2. impaction and perforation (choose the correct bones and make sure raw and not cooked as are brittle and prone to splintering); 3. nutritional imbalances (be sure to add vegetables and supplements). Home Cooked Diet Home cooking is another option. The downside, raw food advocates say, is that you are destroying the beneficial enzymes and nutrients in the food during the cooking process. Even if it’s is cooked, the food will still be far more healthy and bio-available than commercially prepared dog foods. With cooking, you will have to supplement with a calcium source such as calcium carbonate or bone meal. As with a raw diet, be sure to pulp the vegetables, since dogs cannot digest them whole and they would pass through the digestive system unused. Kibble Dry commercial dog food or kibble is the dog food option. Holitic point of view of kibble is probably the least appropriate options for feeding. Kibble goes through a process called extrusion in which it is dried at high temperatures so that much of the moisture is removed. This also removes many naturally occurring enzymes, nutrients and antioxidants that re vital for your dog’s health. The dog food companies add back additives to compensate the lost nutrients and spray the desiccated food with flaw enhancers to make it palatable. It hardly sounds natural. The meat used in dog food is almost always the leftovers from slaughterhouses after the human grade meat is removed. Some animals may have died from disease, others may have been road kill or euthanized. Although dog food companies say they do not use the carcasses of euthanized companion animals, it is perfectly legal, shocking. Canned Food The greatest difference in canned food and dry is moisture content. Canned dog food is mostly water, but check the label and see where the water comes from. Unlike kibble, good quality canned foods often uses whole meats in their natural state which is where the moisture content may come from. Canned food is still cooked, but they are more bio-available than dry kibble. Canned foods end to have a better quality level than kibble. Homeopathy Homeopathy is the belief in the healing power of energy. One way to understand how homeopathy works is to think of each remedy as sort of a tuning fork and if the right remedy is chosen it will resonate with our body and help tune it back to the correct frequency. Three homeopathic fundamental principles 1. The law of similar: like cures like. For more homeopathy resources:The academy of Veterinary Homeopathy, 6400 East Independence Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28212, www.theAVH.org • East Meets West (CHINESE MEDICINE) The best way to explain Chinese medicine is to compare it to Western medicine. The focus of modern medicine is to focus on the individual pieces of the disease, not the overall constitution that enabled the disease to take hold in the first place. Rather than just treating the signs of the disease, traditional Chinese medicine system tries to treat and bring in line the underlying cause. Acupuncture Acupuncture which comes from the latin work acus meaning needle and pungere which means to pierce has been used on animals for millennia. Reports date back to 3,000 years ago with records showing Indian elephants being treated with acupuncture. In modern veterinary medicine, acupuncture is used to treat various disorders. The main question and concern is whether the needs hurt or not. The answer is NO. While your dog might feel a slight twinge when the needle is inserted, there is no discomfort. Most dogs find acupuncture relaxing and restorative and actually fall off to sleep and relax. While acupuncture can show immediate results, it’s important to give the treatments time to work. Allow a minimum of seven or more visits before drawing a conclusion. Many concepts of acupuncture are centered round the following: QI--central force of energy MERIDIANS--streams that move throughout the body YIN AND YANG—yin is the calm female energy and Yang is the insistent, male and firey energy Acupuncture variations include 1. electroacupuncture (traditional acupuncture where points are stimulated by twirling the needles in certain directions mostly used for dogs that are in severe pain or paralyzed which is a more intense treatment); 2. laser acupuncture ( infrared lasers are used to stimulate the acupuncture points and is used on points difficult to use needles and for more fractious dogs); 3. aquapuncture ( sterile liquid which is injected into the a meridian and the pressure form the liquid stimulates the points instead of the needle); 4. moxibustion (mugwort which is an herb known for warming is used in conjunction with the acupuncture treatment); 5. sonapuncture ( ultrasound to stimulate the acupoints for areas not accessible and difficult for needles. For more acupuncture resources: American Academy of Veterinary Acupuncture The International Veterinary Acupuncture Society (IVAS)
Acupressure Acupressure uses the same principles as acupuncture, except that fingers are used instead of needles. This is sort of an acupuncture “lite” process which is used when dogs are so sensitive and all they need is pressure and when some animals are too refractory—or difficult to handle. Acupressure helps with blood flow and stimulation of the QI and movement through the meridian. • There are six major formulas and approaches to holistic supplement treatments: 1. antioxidant therapy: a big buzz word in natural medicine because of the ability to destroy free radicals, mutations which cause cancer 2. herbs: there are many herbs that are said to be cancer fighting and immune enhancing which increase the power to heal by the body 3. essiac tea: blend of herbs known for healing qualities both oral and topical. 4. hoxsey formula: herb liquid formula that have body cleansing and immune building properties. 5. shark cartilage: cartilage from sharks when taken as a supplement is anti-angiogenic which inhibits the development of blood vessels that supply the tumor, thus starving it. 6. nutrition: food and well balance; good nutrition is a cornerstone in strengthen the body and improving and feeding the immune system to fight. There are several diets that have been developed for cancer patients. Good cancer fighting foods include low sugars, carbohydrates, vegetables of carrots, green beans, and broccoli combined with high levels of protein, certain types of fat and high in omega-3 fatty acids. Please see your holistic vet for your pet’s protocol. For more Holistic Cancer therapies: D’Arcy Naturals (hoxey formula resorce) The American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association Academy of Veterinary Homeopathy
Credit: Most of the above information taken from, The Holistic Dog Book, by Denise Flaim Nutrition is the foundation of good health for our canines. Understanding how to select the proper dog food, when and how much to feed, and how dog owners can prevent specific diseases through diet will help dogs live healthier and longer lives. With this said, it is amazing how many nutritionally deprived brands stock the grocery stores shelves. Due to the highly processed ingredients and preservatives used in large assortments of popular brands, they are far from “complete and balanced.” The need for a “long shelf” life may outweigh the need for sound nutrition. If canines are expected to maintain a high quality of life, then optimal nutritional intake is essential. With the numerous dog food brands marketed and available to the consumer, determining which brand will best suit the specific nutritional needs of their dog is challenging. Our dogs unfortunately cannot make the decision, and are dependent upon our expertise. The AAFCO, the Association of American Feed Control Officials, formulates guidelines for the production, labeling and sale of animal foods. When reading the dog food label, it is important to be cognizant of the first few ingredients. According to the AAFCO standards, a diet with meat as the first or second ingredient listed, devoid of artificial colors or preservatives, is preferred. High quality ingredients are crucial for a healthy food. While economy brand foods, made from inexpensive ingredients may meet the legal specifications for percentages of protein, fat, carbohydrates these brands have lower-grade proteins and energy values. Therefore, the essential nutrients have a higher tendency to pass through the dog’s system without being absorbed. Much like the diet of humans, the proper ratio of proteins, carbohydrates, fiber and fats, play a critical role in a dog’s diet. However, it should be understood that this ratio is dependent upon the breed, activity level, age and specific nutritional needs of your dog. When it comes to nutrition, remember that one size does not fit all. Resources Used: “Choosing a Dog Food,” Katharine Hillestad, DVM, www.peteducation.com
“It’s Just A Dog!” “No It's NOT...
How other pets in the house handle the loss It's important to understand that animals mourn the loss of loved ones, just as we do. It's even harder on them because they don't understand where the loved one has gone. That's why they go around searching. Because our pets are so in tune withus, they can pick up on our grief too. The best way to handle this is to offer lots of playtime opportunities. Although your instinct may be to comfort your pet, if you do too much of that in a clinging way, they may really begin to believe that the end of the world is coming. Bottomline: They need activity. Conduct regularly scheduled interactive play sessions and also extra ones whenever you notice your pet drifting off in search of their companion. Increased play activity can also help encourage a healthy appetite again. Don't be in a rush to get another pet until yours has gone through the grieving process. Rushing this decision can cause them to become extremely hostile toward a newcomer. Too many owners rush their pets through the grieving process by forcing them to deal with a new pet on top of all the other confusing emotions they‘re feeling. With time, your love and attention will be what helps your pet through this difficult time. Mourning — Ways to Remember a Wonderful Dog • Take doughnuts and coffee to your dogs play group, and host an informal wake. • Make a special scrap book of photos and reminiscences about your dog • Ask your children if they would like to write and illustrate a story book about their dog. • Create a memorial in your yard. Plant a flowering shrub, place a sculpture in your dogs favorite spot, or have your children paint stepping stones to put in a flower garden. Tell your children that they can leave a note or picture in the memorial spot whenever they miss their dog or want to tell him something. • Arrange to have a tree planted in your dog’s favorite park and invite your dog’s friends to a dedication ceremony. • Establish or contribute to a medical fund for pets in need at your veterinarian’s office. • Post your dog’s photo and obituary on our pet loss page. • Make a donation in your dog’s memory to the FETCH A Cure Memorial Fund. • Put you dog’s ID tags and photo in a frame and display it in their favorite spot in your house. Support when you’re grieving When someone’s beloved dog dies, even the person’s closest friends sometimes don’t know how to respond. They may say “I’m Sorry”, change the subject, and quickly forget about their friends loss. What they may not realize is that people often grieve the death of a dog as deeply as if the dog had been a family member-because that’s what they are. Pet bereavement counseling gives you a place to talk about your loss and cope with it in a positive manner. Many large veterinary hospitals sponsor bereavement counseling-ask your vet about pet-loss groups in your area. The following hotlines and websites also provide support for people whose animals have died. American Veterinary Medical Association Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine University Of California-Davis Veterinary School Ohio State University School of Veterinary Medicine Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine Washington State University College of Veterinary Medicine Super Dog Pet Loss Support and Grief Counseling Hospice resources:
For more Pet Loss resources: Cornell University Pet Support Hotline The National Pet Loss Hotline 1-800-946-4646 (punch in pin number 140-7211 and then your phone number)
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these days, for our animal companions. A true holistic approach is all about balance — emotional and spiritual as well as physical. It means taking into consideration the entire dog, factoring individual circumstances and unique qualities into an approach that will best support overall well-being. In the holistic model, disease is not the simple result of some opportunistic microbe that comes lurking in the night; it’s more global. Instead of being an isolated instance, disease is a symptom of a larger problem, a lack of integration of the physical, mental and spiritual. It is the body’s way of manifesting an imbalance, a disconnect, or blockage of the central life force that animates and makes whole. To gain balance, we must consider the whole picture of who your dog is and how he lives.
