Treatment Decisions
Empower yourself to make informed treatment decisions.
When your dog is diagnosed with cancer, your role in their care is essential. You can actively participate in making treatment decisions without being a medical expert. You don’t need to attend veterinary school–your vet is the medical expert. But you are the expert on your personal situation. With just a basic understanding of canine cancer treatments, you can become your best friend’s best advocate.
Start now! Learn the basics on this website.
Your veterinarian cannot tell you everything you need to know in a single appointment. Empower yourself by exploring our resources, right here.
Learn the basics quickly and efficiently. Time is critical when dealing with cancer.
You need a crash course in canine cancer.
We offer you a crash course in canine cancer, to help you ask the right questions and then confidently make the best decisions. Make use of our two highly trusted resources to gain the knowledge you need: This website and the award-winning book Help Your Dog Fight Cancer. Your new knowledge and your intimate knowledge of your dog will ensure that your dog will receive the best care possible and give him/her the best chance to beat cancer!
Remember:
Your Dog—Your Money—Your Decisions!
4 Types of Treatments
SURGERY
Surgery is often the first step in treating tumors. The goal is to remove the tumor with clean margins, to ensure that no (or few) cancer cells are left behind. However, clean margins aren’t always possible, especially for tumors in a difficult location. In such cases, additional treatments may be needed.
Your dog might require a second surgery or follow-up treatment like chemotherapy or radiation to address the remaining cancer cells. Discuss these options with your veterinarian to help determine the best course of action for your dog’s recovery.
More on pages 79-81 in Help Your Dog Fight Cancer.
CHEMOTHERAPY
For certain types of cancer, most notably lymphoma, chemotherapy is the only type of treatment to give.
Usually, one chemo protocol for a particular type of cancer offers the longest potential survival time. But there are usually other possible protocols. Additionally, any protocol’s dosages, scheduling, and fees can and should be customized to fit the unique needs of the dog and family.
Electro-chemotherapy should also be considered.
More on pages 101-123 in Help Your Dog Fight Cancer.
RADIATION THERAPY
One radiation protocol may call for treatments every day (Monday through Friday), for five weeks. Another may require three treatments a week for four weeks. Which protocol to use for your dog is not set in stone. Discuss your preferences with your vet about the number of treatments, and the strength (aggressiveness) of treatment you would like your dog to be given.
In a great many cases, the radiation protocol that a vet calls “curative” is not (the cancer returns). While a lighter protocol that a vet calls “palliative” is not (the cancer never returns).
More on pages 93-101 of Help Your Dog Fight Cancer.
HOLISTIC & ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS
Holistic and alternative therapies can play a supportive role in managing cancer and improving your dog’s quality of life. Holistic veterinarians can help with supplements, Chinese herbs, acupuncture, and other natural treatments.
These therapies can strengthen your dog’s immune system, reduce inflammation, and alleviate side effects from medical treatments.
While these methods are usually not cures, they complement traditional treatments very well.
More on pages 143-159 of Help Your Dog Fight Cancer.
Clinical Trials
Clinical trials are cancer treatments that are being tested. They are experimental. They have not yet proven to be a good way to fight cancer.
If the researchers find that the treatment does work against cancer, more testing is done to determine how it works best. What dosages are most effective, and how often should the treatments be given?
Clinical trials are most attractive when:
- The primary (best) treatment for your dog’s cancer did not work.
- You cannot afford standard treatment but there is a trial available that covers the costs for you.
When considering a clinical trial, look for published articles in Veterinary Medical Journals. An article will say what tests the drug has been through, the size of the test group, and what the results were. For instance, in a test group of X dogs, X% survived 6 months. Of those, X% survived a year. And so on. If you cannot find any published peer-reviewed articles, then the treatment has not been successful.
There are always many clinical trials, especially for cancer. Unfortunately, only a tiny percentage of all clinical trials will result in a successful new treatment.
You can find a good list of current clinical trials HERE.
More on pages 159-163 in Help Your Dog Fight Cancer.
After Treatment
PLEASE THINK AHEAD!
Think about what you will do at the end. Where will take him for euthanasia, or who will you call to come to your home? Do you want cremation or burial? Make these decisions in advance so that on that last day you can be there for him as a warm, calm, loving presence in his last moments.
PALLIATIVE CARE
Many situations call for a dog with cancer to be given palliative care. These are a few of the most common situations:
- Treatment was given but is no longer working;
- There is no treatment available for a dog with cancer;
- The owner’s finances are limited and they can’t afford treatment fees;
- A dog’s age or health rules out the possibility of treatment being given.
In palliative care, the goal is not to give treatment that will get rid of the cancer. The goal is to provide a dog with a good quality of life, pain-free, with lots of love as long as possible. Until the cancer progresses.
The dog’s day-to-day health issues are still addressed. As the cancer progresses, the dog can be helped with remedies for mild or moderate pain. Other issues that result from cancer or from treatment that may have been given can be treated.
Palliative care does not necessarily mean that the end is imminent! In some cases, palliative care continues for quite a long time.
More on pages 250-210 in Help Your Dog Fight Cancer.
EUTHANASIA
Whether treatment is successful or not, at some point you will need to think about the end of your dog’s life. Be prepared to help your dog through euthanasia when it is time. You gave him a great life. You don’t want him to suffer at the end of his life.
One important tool is the Quality of Life Scale. Most owners are afraid they will not know “when it’s time” for euthanasia. A QOL Scale will help you evaluate. Print one out and fill in the answers. You will see a recommendation showing whether it is time for you to think about euthanasia. You can fill it in again every week or every day, depending on your dog’s condition.
Here are links to several helpful scales:
- Quality-of-Life Assessment from Lap of Love
- HHHHHMM Quality of Life Scale by Dr. Alice Villalobos
- Dog Life Quality Assessment by Dr. Mary Gardner
More on pages 210-216 in Help Your Dog Fight Cancer.