How lucky are we that Snuggy is still with us and going strong? X-rays show that his tumors have not grown in size. He continues with carboplatin chemotherapy every 3weeks. I believe his good health is the result of the combination of the chemo, Essiac tea, high-protein organic diet, and Chinese herbs that are working in concert with each other. Afterall, this is the same regimen that cured my rottweiler, Beanny, of his bone cancer years ago.
The only side effects of the chemo are lethargy and a lower appetite for 3 days post chemo. In addition, he seems to be prone to urinary infections but those are fairly easily cured with antibiotics. All in all, it's good to be Snuggy.
For any of you who are interested, the Chinese herbs that Snuggy gets are:
Xue Fu Zhu Yu Tang (Natural Path) - 1/2 tsp, twice day per day
Shi Quan Da Bu Tang (Evergreen) - 1/2 tsp, twice per day
Keep your good thoughts coming our way - they are working. Snuggy looks forward to celebrating his 5th Thanksgiving with us and eating lots of turkey (hold the stuffing - too many carbs!).
Happy Thanksgiving to all!!
Monday, November 17, 2008
Saturday, July 5, 2008
Snuggy continues to do well
It's now been7 months since Snuggy's diagnosis of lung cancer and he continues to be symptom free and enjoying life as he always has.
Snuggy received several rounds of vinblastine chemotherapy along with Essiac tea, a high protein natural diet, some chinese herbs, and several other supplements. This had kept the cancer in check until June. The results of his chest x-ray showed that the cancer had grown a bit since his last chest x-ray in May so the vets changed his chemo drug to carboplatin. Snuggy had some minor side effects from this last round of the new chemo (lethargy and loss of appetite for a few days) but is back to his old self again.
Hopefully this new chemo will kill of these ugly cancer cells. Go Snuggy!!
Snuggy received several rounds of vinblastine chemotherapy along with Essiac tea, a high protein natural diet, some chinese herbs, and several other supplements. This had kept the cancer in check until June. The results of his chest x-ray showed that the cancer had grown a bit since his last chest x-ray in May so the vets changed his chemo drug to carboplatin. Snuggy had some minor side effects from this last round of the new chemo (lethargy and loss of appetite for a few days) but is back to his old self again.
Hopefully this new chemo will kill of these ugly cancer cells. Go Snuggy!!
Sunday, February 24, 2008
February 13, 2008 - A visit to Tufts Veterinary Hospital
Snuggy had an appointment at Tufts with another veterinary oncologist. The vet here told us that Snuggy's cancer is quite rare in dogs. Many canine cancers metastasize to the lung, but few actual start there. Therefore, there aren't any clinical trials running at Tufts for this disease, but the vet will ask his colleagues around the country to see it there are any being run at other veterinary hospitals.
The vet at Tuft's assessment was basically the same as at Angell. However, his statistics showed that dogs tolerate vinorelbine quite well and that the percentage of dogs which are helped by this drug is quite a but higher than 17%. He thought this chemo drug was the place to start, and if doesn't shrink the tumor, we can look at other options.
We felt that Tufts was a little more proactive than Angell and a bit better informed so we will start Snuggy on chemo at Tufts. The vet gave us a prescription for 25mg of Deramaxx. DERAMAXX is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). He will get this in conjunction with the chemotherapy, which will start next Tuesday.
Interestingly, the vet has said that the canine cancer research community has basically come to the conclusion that the explosion in rate of dog cancers is mainly the result of environmental factors. Dog's life spans are short and they metabolize everything much faster than humans. Therefore toxins in food, pesticides, air, water, household cleaners, etc...affect them faster and more acutely. All the more reason to adopt a green household to minimize the exposure to these deadly chemicals.
Snuggy is still showing no signs of disease. He is eating well, and enjoying life as always. He is the Snuggy buggy!
The vet at Tuft's assessment was basically the same as at Angell. However, his statistics showed that dogs tolerate vinorelbine quite well and that the percentage of dogs which are helped by this drug is quite a but higher than 17%. He thought this chemo drug was the place to start, and if doesn't shrink the tumor, we can look at other options.
We felt that Tufts was a little more proactive than Angell and a bit better informed so we will start Snuggy on chemo at Tufts. The vet gave us a prescription for 25mg of Deramaxx. DERAMAXX is a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID). He will get this in conjunction with the chemotherapy, which will start next Tuesday.
Interestingly, the vet has said that the canine cancer research community has basically come to the conclusion that the explosion in rate of dog cancers is mainly the result of environmental factors. Dog's life spans are short and they metabolize everything much faster than humans. Therefore toxins in food, pesticides, air, water, household cleaners, etc...affect them faster and more acutely. All the more reason to adopt a green household to minimize the exposure to these deadly chemicals.
Snuggy is still showing no signs of disease. He is eating well, and enjoying life as always. He is the Snuggy buggy!
February 11, 2008 - A visit to Angell Memorial Hospital
We had an appointment for Snuggy with a veterinary oncologist at Angell Memorial Hospital in Boston. The doctor reviewed the x-rays with us again in great depth and reiterate that it appeared that the primary tumor appears to be the large one in the upper lung, and that it has metastasized and formed to smaller tumors on the other side of the lung. Surgery is not an option as the primary tumor is too large and because the cancer has already spread. To remove all the tumors would be major surgery and would leave him with too little lung capacity. The only option she could offer was chemotherapy. For this specific form of cancer they use a drug called vinorelbine. She stated that only 17% of dogs receive any benefit from this chemotherapy regimen. Without any intervention, he probably has 6-12 months to live.
So, the news is not good. We asked the vet about clinical trials and they don't have any to offer. We told her that we were going out for a second option to Tufts University Veterinary Hospital in two days. She thought that if anyone had clinical trial options, it would be them. So off we go to Tufts.
So, the news is not good. We asked the vet about clinical trials and they don't have any to offer. We told her that we were going out for a second option to Tufts University Veterinary Hospital in two days. She thought that if anyone had clinical trial options, it would be them. So off we go to Tufts.
Monday, February 4, 2008
A Visit with the Holostic Vet
On Saturday we met with a vet who in addition to conventional medicine, also studies Chinese medicines. She is going to order some chinese herbs for Snuggy which hopefully will arrive shortly. She didn't think these could cure his cancer because the type of cancer he has (carcinoma) is so aggressive, but they should help diminish the symptoms and help slow the growth.
I asked her about acupuncture and she told me that acupuncture is great, except for cancer patients. She said it's because acupuncture brings energy and increases blood flow which will just feed the cancer, and obviously you do not want to do this. This was news to me as everything I've heard/read contradicts this. So back to the internet I went and found information that states "you want to be exceedingly careful in using acupuncture with cancer because selecting the wrong points can actually accelerate the cancer growth." The key is to get a very experienced acupuncturist who is knowledgeable about cancer specifically. So for now, we'll skip this option but are still looking at other treatments such as infrared therapy to complement the diet, herbs, and supplements he is taking.
Snuggy remains symptom free, but we have noticed his appetitite has increased. This is common in cancer patients as the cancer is trying to feed itself and robbing the rest of the body to do so. Weight loss is common in dogs with cancer which is why we feeding Snuggy a little more food, concentrated in high quality proteins because cancer feeds on carbohydrates.
Snuggy enjoyed watching the Superbowl last night but was disappointed that the Patriots did not win. However, we can't be too sad about the Giants winning as they support animal charities. Snug hopes he'll be around next year at this time to watch Superbowl XLIII. Go Snug!!
I asked her about acupuncture and she told me that acupuncture is great, except for cancer patients. She said it's because acupuncture brings energy and increases blood flow which will just feed the cancer, and obviously you do not want to do this. This was news to me as everything I've heard/read contradicts this. So back to the internet I went and found information that states "you want to be exceedingly careful in using acupuncture with cancer because selecting the wrong points can actually accelerate the cancer growth." The key is to get a very experienced acupuncturist who is knowledgeable about cancer specifically. So for now, we'll skip this option but are still looking at other treatments such as infrared therapy to complement the diet, herbs, and supplements he is taking.
Snuggy remains symptom free, but we have noticed his appetitite has increased. This is common in cancer patients as the cancer is trying to feed itself and robbing the rest of the body to do so. Weight loss is common in dogs with cancer which is why we feeding Snuggy a little more food, concentrated in high quality proteins because cancer feeds on carbohydrates.
Snuggy enjoyed watching the Superbowl last night but was disappointed that the Patriots did not win. However, we can't be too sad about the Giants winning as they support animal charities. Snug hopes he'll be around next year at this time to watch Superbowl XLIII. Go Snug!!
Thursday, January 31, 2008
The Beginning
Last week we brought Snuggy in to our local vet for a routine anesthesia consult before a tooth extraction. The vet called the next day to tell us that because his albumin level was so low (1.4) that he needed more follow-up before he could have the procedure. They re-ran the test and got the same low test result. In addition, they also ran liver and kidney tests which turned out normal(low albumnin sometime indicates kidney or liver dysfunction).
The local vet referred us to Angell Memorial Hospital in Boston, a large animal medical center with specialists and high tech equipment of every kind. We are all too familiar with Angell as they have cared for many of our animals with serious illnesses. An ultrasound and chest-xray revealed a large solid mass in his upper chest and two smaller opaque tumors in his lower chest. Pathology results the next day confirmed it was carcinoma, with the primary site believed to be the lung. What a shock - he had no obvious symptoms! However in retrospect he had coughed a few times over the last several weeks, but it was so infrequent that it wasn't concerning.
We have an appointment with a veterinary oncologist on February 11th and with a holistic vet tomorrow. In the mean time we have started him on Essiac tea, IP-6, switched him to Beanny's anti-cancer diet (high protein, low carb), and have ordered a variety of other immune boosting and anti-cancer supplements. I am trying to read everything I can find on lung cancer in dogs. In the mean time, he has no idea he is sick. He is eating well and running around with the other dogs. Ignorance is bliss!
The local vet referred us to Angell Memorial Hospital in Boston, a large animal medical center with specialists and high tech equipment of every kind. We are all too familiar with Angell as they have cared for many of our animals with serious illnesses. An ultrasound and chest-xray revealed a large solid mass in his upper chest and two smaller opaque tumors in his lower chest. Pathology results the next day confirmed it was carcinoma, with the primary site believed to be the lung. What a shock - he had no obvious symptoms! However in retrospect he had coughed a few times over the last several weeks, but it was so infrequent that it wasn't concerning.
We have an appointment with a veterinary oncologist on February 11th and with a holistic vet tomorrow. In the mean time we have started him on Essiac tea, IP-6, switched him to Beanny's anti-cancer diet (high protein, low carb), and have ordered a variety of other immune boosting and anti-cancer supplements. I am trying to read everything I can find on lung cancer in dogs. In the mean time, he has no idea he is sick. He is eating well and running around with the other dogs. Ignorance is bliss!
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