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!
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I thank your for sharing this wonderful story and Snuggypuss was a gift and he had the best parents who did all they could for him. Your so right that a companion of a dog is a great think I had my share of loving and losing them.
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