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Signs of cancer include:
• Weight loss
• Inappetance or anorexia
• Difficulty breathing
• Fever
• Bloody noses or abnormal bruising or
bleeding
• Difficulty urinating or defecating
• Abnormal swellings that continue to grow
in size
• Non-healing sores
• A lameness that does not resolve
• Masses over the mammary area
• Acute seizures
Obviously, this list isn’t inclusive, but the point is, if you notice anything unusual in your pet, get to a veterinarian, pronto! Unfortunately, dogs don’t show their signs of cancer until it is severe or end-stage, so the prognosis for cancer varies with the type, location, and degree of metastasis (cancer spread).
The diagnosis of cancer is made based on physical examination, blood work, X-rays, ultrasound with aspirates or biopsies, CT, or MRI. Most types of canine cancer are not "curative," depending on the grade of severity of the cancer. Treatment may include a combination of surgery or surgical debulking (making it smaller via surgery but not curing it), radiation therapy, chemotherapy,
or immunotherapy. Your
veterinarian may refer you to
a board-certified oncologist
(cancer specialist) for further
workup. Your oncologist can
then discuss the overall
success rate of treatment
options, which again, depends
on the type, extent, malignancy,
and spread of the cancer. Lastly,
remember that while there is a
lot of bad or erroneous
information on the Web, there
is also some helpful info.
Some of my favorite veterinary
sites are:
Veterinary Cancer Society, American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine and American Veterinary Medical Association. (Ed. Note: There is also a petMD cancer topic center for both dogs and cats.)
Having a dog with cancer is devastating. I’ve had to personally experience this myself with JP. That said, JP survived the odds. I was quoted that he’d only live 4-10 months, and he’s at 11 months so far! Don’t get false hope, however. This is extremely long, and I’ve been grateful for every day since then. After all, each day is icing on the cake.
Know that if your pet is diagnosed with cancer, there are many options, ranging from humane euthanasia to steroid therapy to more aggressive treatments. Find a veterinarian or veterinary oncologist who will work with you to make the best decision for you and your pet.
Dr. Justine Lee
https://m.petmd.com/blogs/thedailyvet/jlee/2011/june/does_radon_cause_cancer_in_pets-11253#