Radiation is a big gun in dog cancer therapy. There are many out there that would not even consider it….to hardcore, too scary. And honestly, many times they might be correct. But in some cases radiation should be at least considered.
For many it is out of the question. No nearby cancer referral center, no veterinary university, no money. But for those that live fairly close to a facility that offers this modality, it is an option.
Why do people opt for radiation for their dogs? What is the point?
Radiation is to help dogs that have cancers that are hard to cure. These cancers either never go away, or go away with treatment only temporarily. So people consider it as another way to increase their dog’s life expectancy or to hopefully improve life quality.
Radiation is used to decrease the tumor cell burden (kills certain types of cancer cells), in very few cancers can cure them. More and more frequently, it is used to help with tumor pain. If a tumor cannot be removed with surgery (inoperable), radiation can be an option as well.
What cancers are very sensitive to radiation (where radiation can kill a lot of the cancer cells)? Lymphosarcoma is a biggie, perianal adenoma/adenocarcinoma, neuroblastoma, plasmacytoma, and transmissable venereal tumor. Some other cancers that are moderately sensitive (radiation helps a bit) are nerve sheath tumors (hemangiopericytomas), fibrosarcomas, and histiocytomas.
Radiation can help control pain with osteosarcomas in dogs.
So that’s a bit of the good. Let’s look at the bad in the next blog post.
Best to all,