Pekoes Biopsy report, Bad news
Moderator: chowadmin
- willowchow
- Rank 2
- Posts: 764
- Joined: Tue Mar 29, 2005 8:04 am
We took Pekoe to the Oncologist this morning, they switched the appointment to today (Wed) She thinks but can't guarantee that we may have caught it in time but can't really say until she see's Pekoe's Lung X-rays, so where it stands right now she wants lung X-rays to see if the cancer has spread, one or two radiation treatments to the tongue then a series of 5 vaccine treatments (shots). The 5 vaccine treatments is a new cancer drug that U of Wisconsin, UC Davis and a few others are using to treat cancer now, this hospital works with the University of Wisconsin.
She thinks we may have caught it in time because Pekoe is so healthy and all her lab results are good, she said Pekoe is exceptionally healthy for being 10 and That most of the time when dogs are brought in with oral cancer they are already showing symptoms, Bleeding from the mouth, excessive weight loss, sores in the mouth, Pekoe had none of these symptoms because we found it so fast. So Pekoe should be ok but the x-rays will tell the whole story.
She also said Oral Malignant melanoma isn't as rare as the vet made it sound, Chows, Cocker spaniels and some other breeds are susceptible to it because it comes from the Skin pigmentation cells, I was trying to calm Pekoe down so the Oncologist was mostly talking to my Wife about how the cancer starts.
I really like this Vet she seems to know what she is talking about and you know you struck gold when they tell you to take the muzzle off because Pekoe is uncomfortable with it on and she doesn't believe in using Sedations and anesthesia unless absolutely necessary. We also discussed yearly vaccines and she said alot of vets now are only doing vaccines every 3 or 4 years instead of every year because of the cancer risks.
If you have a Chow over 8 I would start checking their tongues just to be on the safe side, we only found Pekoes by mistake and that was way at the back of her tongue, if Pekoe didn't try to eat everything she finds in the bushes we would have never noticed the lump.
She thinks we may have caught it in time because Pekoe is so healthy and all her lab results are good, she said Pekoe is exceptionally healthy for being 10 and That most of the time when dogs are brought in with oral cancer they are already showing symptoms, Bleeding from the mouth, excessive weight loss, sores in the mouth, Pekoe had none of these symptoms because we found it so fast. So Pekoe should be ok but the x-rays will tell the whole story.
She also said Oral Malignant melanoma isn't as rare as the vet made it sound, Chows, Cocker spaniels and some other breeds are susceptible to it because it comes from the Skin pigmentation cells, I was trying to calm Pekoe down so the Oncologist was mostly talking to my Wife about how the cancer starts.
I really like this Vet she seems to know what she is talking about and you know you struck gold when they tell you to take the muzzle off because Pekoe is uncomfortable with it on and she doesn't believe in using Sedations and anesthesia unless absolutely necessary. We also discussed yearly vaccines and she said alot of vets now are only doing vaccines every 3 or 4 years instead of every year because of the cancer risks.
If you have a Chow over 8 I would start checking their tongues just to be on the safe side, we only found Pekoes by mistake and that was way at the back of her tongue, if Pekoe didn't try to eat everything she finds in the bushes we would have never noticed the lump.
Well Jeff! That sounds like pretty promising news! I hope you did catch it in time. Please let us know right away when you find out about her lungs. I've been thinking about all of you this whole holiday and hoping everything was going okay!
I am also amazed that you may have found a vet that you like!!! How did Pekoe react to her? I am so glad you were able to take off the muzzle. She does sound like a wonderful vet...that in itself is wonderful news.
I will definitely keep my eyes on they furkids tongues from now on. Thank you so much for sharing your story and helping us all become more aware.
Keep us updated.
Thinking of Queen Pekoe...
Mandy
I am also amazed that you may have found a vet that you like!!! How did Pekoe react to her? I am so glad you were able to take off the muzzle. She does sound like a wonderful vet...that in itself is wonderful news.
I will definitely keep my eyes on they furkids tongues from now on. Thank you so much for sharing your story and helping us all become more aware.
Keep us updated.
Thinking of Queen Pekoe...
Mandy
- Zhuyos mom
- Moderator
- Posts: 2712
- Joined: Wed Mar 02, 2005 9:37 am
- Location: SF Peninsula
Jeff I can't tell you how extremely happy I am for both you and Pekoe. Pekoe girl, you may be stubborn and spoiled (as every chow on this board is) but you show them you can beat this, girl. How long before you know anything about the lung x-rays? I am so happy Jeff. This has just made my day!
Nancy and Tai
Jeff&Peks wrote:
"The 5 vaccine treatments is a new cancer drug that U of Wisconsin, UC Davis and a few others are using to treat cancer now, this hospital works with the University of Wisconsin....She also said Oral Malignant melanoma isn't as rare as the vet made it sound, Chows, Cocker spaniels and some other breeds are susceptible to it because it comes from the Skin pigmentation cells"
---
You've found a wonderful doctor. I'm very happy for you and wish Pekoe a full recovery. Near the beginning of this thread, I posted an excerpt for you concerning these new vaccines, showing how common this disease is in black-mouthed dogs. Copper is a component of melanin, and copper is involved with tumor growth as well.
In case you are interested in asking the doctor about Pekoe's nutrition during treatment, this next link goes into detail about copper, tumor growth and suppression, nutritional adjustment to tweak-down copper levels, etc. IIRC, Nutro Lamb was one of the higher copper enriched foods (for some reason it keeps jagging my memory.) Just thought I'd mention it.
http://www.cancerfoundation.com/copperprotocol.html
"The 5 vaccine treatments is a new cancer drug that U of Wisconsin, UC Davis and a few others are using to treat cancer now, this hospital works with the University of Wisconsin....She also said Oral Malignant melanoma isn't as rare as the vet made it sound, Chows, Cocker spaniels and some other breeds are susceptible to it because it comes from the Skin pigmentation cells"
---
You've found a wonderful doctor. I'm very happy for you and wish Pekoe a full recovery. Near the beginning of this thread, I posted an excerpt for you concerning these new vaccines, showing how common this disease is in black-mouthed dogs. Copper is a component of melanin, and copper is involved with tumor growth as well.
In case you are interested in asking the doctor about Pekoe's nutrition during treatment, this next link goes into detail about copper, tumor growth and suppression, nutritional adjustment to tweak-down copper levels, etc. IIRC, Nutro Lamb was one of the higher copper enriched foods (for some reason it keeps jagging my memory.) Just thought I'd mention it.
http://www.cancerfoundation.com/copperprotocol.html
Thanks Kiwani, Because of your post about the vaccines and oral cancer I was able to understand more of what she was saying and get more into detail about what she had in mind. When she said vaccines I brought up the vaccines they were using at the Universities and she said that's what she is talking about, the vaccines are sent in from the University of Wisconsin
She did say we are going to have to talk about Pekoes diet and nutrition and is going to refer us to a nutritionist The Nutro lamb is interesting, that's what Pekoe has been eating for years and I have been pushing for years. That website about the copper is a little deep I think I understood about 5 words but I have to reread it and talk to the doctor about it.
All your web referals have been alot of help, to bad the Vets that get paid to know this stuff have no idea whats going on.Hey your dogs got cancer, don't know what your going to do about it, maybe get another dog? thats $55 thanks for coming in.
She did say we are going to have to talk about Pekoes diet and nutrition and is going to refer us to a nutritionist The Nutro lamb is interesting, that's what Pekoe has been eating for years and I have been pushing for years. That website about the copper is a little deep I think I understood about 5 words but I have to reread it and talk to the doctor about it.
All your web referals have been alot of help, to bad the Vets that get paid to know this stuff have no idea whats going on.Hey your dogs got cancer, don't know what your going to do about it, maybe get another dog? thats $55 thanks for coming in.
- willowchow
- Rank 2
- Posts: 764
- Joined: Tue Mar 29, 2005 8:04 am
Pekoe is *really* fortunate to have so many specialists in the area. I am very interested in reading any information you would share about the nutritional plan they'll be mapping out.
In a nutshell, the last web site explained how copper was involved in feeding tumors a blood supply, allowing them to grow and spread further. It listed nutrients such as zinc, vitamin c and others, which act as a counterbalance to the high copper and help to strengthen the immune system.
I do recall research some years ago, which showed that most of the dog foods contained high levels of copper, but unfortunately I don't have the detailed brand research saved.
All the best...
In a nutshell, the last web site explained how copper was involved in feeding tumors a blood supply, allowing them to grow and spread further. It listed nutrients such as zinc, vitamin c and others, which act as a counterbalance to the high copper and help to strengthen the immune system.
I do recall research some years ago, which showed that most of the dog foods contained high levels of copper, but unfortunately I don't have the detailed brand research saved.
All the best...