Parents - if you want your puppy dog to be a 10 year cancer survivor, listen to this podcast.
Hudson, Fuzzybutt #3, was diagnosed with a Mast Cell tumor when he was just 5 years old, the first of over a dozen masses I removed from him throughout his life. Early on in his cancer, I learned about additional diagnostic tests that looked at genetic mutations specific to Mast Cell cancer. These markers help pathologists understand things like Mitotic Index, which measures the rate of tumor growth. That additional data is then used for a more precise treatment plan for the type of cancer specific to your dog.
And in Hudson's case, the test indicated that Hudson's MCT was slow growing and removal of the tumor with clean margins alone was recommended. No chemotherapy. This was medical advice I followed in every single subsequent case when another cancerous mass emerged. And in every instance, surgery alone was sufficient. We got the best possible outcome...
So if you think about what that means, just doing additional diagnostics saved Hudson from the damage that unnecessary chemotherapy can do And because I'm the stay-awake-til-the-kids-come-home kind of parent, I would've chosen chemo every time if it wasn't for those additional diagnostics. There is a little known interesting phenomenon called autophagy that should always factor into treatment decisions which I'll get into more another time. But if I had chosen chemo, I am completely convinced Hudson would not have lived to 15, surviving cancer for 10 years.
With Searchlight DNA, Vidium Animal Health is taking advanced diagnostics to the next level and their diagnostic technology identifies mutations in 120 different cancer genes. And while in Hudson's case the recommendation was no further treatment, their diagnostic data can also indicate which therapy more accurately targets that type of cancer. In either case, the chances of a longer survivable life with cancer almost always increases with additional data.
David Haworth, the CEO of Vidium, does a terrific job of explaining their cutting edge technology to Yer Big Dog and Miss Morgan in this episode, and as the former head of Morris Animal Foundation and PetSmart Charities, we share lots of tantalizing stories, too.
Listen to this action packed episode and while you're doing so, learn more about Searchlight DNA and Vidium at https://vidiumah.com/
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#FuzzybuttsAndFriends #YerBigDog #CanineCancer #GingerMorgan #PuppyUp #ComparativeOncology #VidiumAnimalHealth #SearchlightDNA #Dogs #DogCancer
