Cancer Awareness
By David Gagnon, DVM
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| David Gagnon, DVM |
We all know people get cancer, but did you know our pets do
too? Cancer, or neoplasia (from the
greek neo = new, and plasma = formation/growth) is uncontrolled cell growth and
can show up in a variety of ways, including in the skin, fat, bone, blood, and
many other places. Some cancers in
animals can be malignant, while others may be benign.
Since cancer can show up in different fashions, and a “mass”
can be seemingly anything, we have several ways to determine whether your
animal has cancer, and whether it is malignant or benign. We always prefer to look at its cells, and
the simplest way is as easy as doing a fine needle aspirate (collecting cells
with a needle). Biopsy with evaluation
by a pathologist is the best way to give us a true diagnosis.
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| Microscopic evaluation of fine needle aspirate |
Not all masses are apparent on your pet’s skin. Sometimes we can try to visualize them on
x-rays, ultrasound, CT or MRI. Occasionally advanced blood tests are the
preferred method of diagnosing cancer, as not all cancers are in the form of
tumors.
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| Abdominal mass |
In addition to the many techniques we use to diagnose
cancer, there are multiple ways to treat it.
Surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy are available, depending on
the cancer. Most of the tumors we see in
general practice are cured by surgery alone, whether it’s removing a lump from
the skin, amputating a limb, or removing the spleen. When most people think of
“chemo,” they think of nausea, hair loss, and poor quality of life. While this may be the case in people, this is
not typical of our animal patients. In
humans, our goal is usually to cure the disease. In pets, our goal is a good quality of life,
so we can try to put the disease into remission while keeping our pets in
otherwise good health. Radiation is
another way to treat cancer. The University of Wisconsin – Madison Veterinary Medical
Teaching Hospital recently became the first veterinary school to become
equipped with Tomotherapy. This uses CT scans to target the radiation,
so that only the cancer is treated, instead of surrounding tissues.
There are many unknowns when it comes to cancer, and there
is constant research to learn more. Morris
Animal Foundation is conducting a large study of Golden Retrievers over the course
of their lifetime to learn about risk factors, prevention, and cures for
cancer. This involves dedication from the
dogs’ owners and veterinarians to collect various samples every year so
researchers can identify genetic, environmental, and nutritional risk factors
for cancer and other major health problems in dogs. Check out the Morris Animal Foundation’s
Golden Golden Retriever Lifetime Study.
If you’re interested in participating in this study, please let us
know. The more animals that participate,
the more information will be available to help future cancer patients. Click the link below to learn more.
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