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New drugs resulting in more options for pets that have cancer

Jim was stunned. It was as if his five senses had suddenly left him. Did the room suddenly get smaller and darker? The doctor was rapid-fire talking, using words and terms that Jim didn't understand and, worse yet, didn't want to understand. The doctor, sensing that Jim was not coping with the news, stopped his soliloquy and gently touched Jim's arm, expressing volumes with his contact and bringing Jim back to the examination room. "Jim, I realize that this bad news about Gracie has caught you by surprise. I know the close relationship you have enjoyed with her for these last nine years and know that this diagnosis of cancer has knocked you for a loop. But there are things we can do for her." "Dr. Frank, you'd better cover some basics - I didn't even realize that pets were susceptible to cancer." The management of veterinary cancer patients has improved considerably over the last few decades. In the past, cancer was considered solely a surgical disease: cut some or all of it out and pray that it doesn't come back. But today, the combination of surgery, radiation therapy and chemotherapy have allowed our pets to either overcome cancer or, at a minimum, for them to enjoy a longer life. The ideal for veterinary medicine is not only the cure or control of cancer but also the prevention of cancer through tests to detect precancerous and early neoplastic states. These tests include routine, regular physical examinations, blood and urine tests, X-rays, ultrasound, and, at veterinary schools, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT). If a bump is detected and if accessible, a biopsy can be taken. This simple procedure can potentially reveal the type and perhaps stage of the cancer. Armed with this information, the pet owner can be offered a prognosis and an assortment of treatment options. Tumor vernacular

A neoplasm or tumor is a disturbance or growth of cells, and they are divided into two groups: benign and malignant. Benign tumors are slow growing, remain in one location in the body and usually do little harm. Malignant tumors, often called "cancer," are just the opposite: they grow rapidly, tend to invade and metastasize or spread in the body and can be painful and fatal. Treatment of cancer

In cancer medicine, "success" is sometimes claimed if the pet enjoys a longer life relieved of some of the effects of the cancer. Unfortunately, success does not always mean that the disease is cured. While surgery is still the primary mode of dealing with cancer in veterinary medicine, radiation therapy or radiotherapy and chemotherapy are rapidly growing in availability and use. Some cancers are highly sensitive to radiotherapy and can be cured or dramatically reduced with radiation. But radiation is rarely used as the only means of treatment; often, chemotherapy or surgery follows radiotherapy. In pets, radiotherapy rarely causes radiation sickness. Chemotherapy, along with manipulation of the immune system, has been used for years. But new cancer-fighting drugs and improved protocols have resulted in increased optimism. Anorexia, nausea, hair loss (but it grows back), infections and diarrhea are observed with chemotherapy. Like radiation therapy, chemotherapy is prolonged, often involving many weeks or months of treatment. Also like radiation therapy, chemotherapy is expensive, often costing from $500 to $2,500 for treatment. Many pet owners, when faced with the realization that their pet has cancer, must ask themselves: Do I want to put my pet through a protracted procedure that may have adverse side effects and be financially taxing, knowing full well that the results may be limited to the fact that my four-legged friend is relieved of most of the pain of the cancer, and I can enjoy him or her for another 15-24 months? The answer varies with each pet owner, but it is comforting to know that there are options available to us.