Dog Brain Cancer: Diagnosis
Canine Cancer
According to the Animal Cancer Foundation, roughly 6 million dogs a year will be diagnosed with some type of cancer. Canine cancer is similar to the cancer seen in humans and for the most part the diagnosis is something that wasn’t predicted. Dog cancer is the leading cause of death in dogs after the age of 10. I have read articles after articles and medical journals and nobody has an exact answer of why a dog could develop cancer. There are studies that certain breeds are more likely to get cancer and that cancer is more likely in an older dog.
Brain Cancer Symptoms or Warning Signs
Seizures (seizures are the most common early clinical sign of a brain tumor in dogs)
Depression
Head tilting or neck/head pain
Cranial nerve deficits
Loss of balance/ “drunken” walk
Decreased vision or loss of vision
Difficulty swallowing
Voice change (being more vocal or hoarseness)
Overall weakness and lethargy
Strange behaviors (mood changes and aggression)
Gain or loss of appetite
Vomiting
Weight loss
Diagnosis a dog with a Brain Tumor.
CTI scan
MRI scan
Blood, urine, spinal fluid samples
X-Rays
Life Expectancy for a dog with Brain Cancer
Different for each fur-baby, but treatment is suggested.
Surgery, Chemo, Radiation (CFRT & SRS/SRT), Palliative,
Wrong Diagnosis
Izabella has always been a very energetic dog, she was always by my side and never left even when I showered. I started noticing her energy level was lower than normal. We went on a run with one of my clients and after she seemed super tired, which was not like her at all. I knew something was wrong by the look in her eyes, so I immediately took her to our vet at the time and she diagnosed Izzy with:
Pancreatitis
Vestibular Syndrome
Ear Infection
I went home and did some research and knew that it was something different and demanded that she order more tests for Izzy. The doctor kept insisting to let the medicine work and kept mentioning that she is “getting older.” Izabella has been an active healthy dog her entire life (She was 8 at the time) and she eat natural food, prepped fresh in our kitchen. A month goes by & my heart literally broke that I couldn’t figure out how to make Izabella feel better. As the month passed she started showing different symptoms than before.
Symptoms included
Weight Loss
Loss of Appetite
Vomiting
Dizziness / Lack of balance
Eyes were pulsing + pupils were dilated
She wasn’t excited to go outside
Seemed exhausted
Discharge/Urination not normal
I probably called her vet more than 50 times in the 2 weeks. We kept taking her back in and the doctor kept saying the same thing she said before. I kept a close eye on eyes and continued to ask around and read journals and articles over these symptoms. Even though Izzy was acting different, there were some days where she would be so energetic and run away like she always did, but I could tell something was still wrong.
Grand Mal Seizure
I remember the morning that we rushed Izzy to the hospital, I had this weird feeling when i woke up and even though I didn’t believe it.. I looked up “How to know if your dog is dying” and then found the nearest Animal hospital that was thankfully 3 minutes away from our house. After a few hours from waking up, I kept checking on Izzy and because she making a weird noise. Nothing like she has made before. I remember laying by her on the floor and I gave her a kiss and said mommy loves you, then she looked at me and slowly stood up and collapsed right in front of me. I noticed she peed herself, so we grabbed her and rushed her to the ER. I sat in the backseat with my child in my arms and I saw her take her last breath as we pulled up to the ER. I didn’t even wait for the car to be parked and I jumped out of the car and ran into the doors of the hospital. One of the nurses sprinted to grab my Izabella and took her to the back. I LOST IT… I’ve never cried or hurt so bad in my life.
VCA Hospital Nurses
Izabella wasn’t breathing and the nurses at VCA asked if they should try to bring her back.. I screamed and said, “BRING MY BABY BACK TO ME.” Two minutes later the nurse came back in and said she’s back with us. The joy and happiness I had cannot be explained. They had to keep Izabella overnight to monitor her and give her fluids throughout the night, but told me we can call or come up whenever I needed to. I fully believe that Izzy was alive because of the male nurse at VCA, he saved her.. and I will never forget him. (Thank you, if you ever see this.) VCA in the South bay
The day she was diagnosed with Cancer.
Izabella was transferred to a bigger hospital that had specialists there because they assumed it was Neurological. Our new doctor (the specialist) took an MRI Scan of Izzy and said they found a tumor on her brain. The world stopped when I heard those words. I will never forget the feeling of being so lost and so broken.
The Neurologist exact words, “It’s unfortunately an inoperable tumor because it’s on her brain stem. In most cases dogs that experience this will usually pass within a month, sometimes they can live longer, but there is no way to tell. She referred us to an oncologist to meet with and discuss more treatment options.
Home & Praying
First night my Izabella got to come home. She wasn’t able to jump on the bed so we made a bed on the ground because she usually sleeps with me on the bed. I probably slept a total of 15 minutes because I was waking up every second to make sure she was okay. I’m sure if any of you have gone through this… you know exactly what I’m talking about.
Types of Canine Brain Cancer
Primary Brain Tumors: This type of cancer originates in the brain’s cells and its membranes.
The most common primary brain tumors include:
Meningiomas
Glioma tumor
Choroid plexus papilloma
Pituitary adenoma
Adenocarcinoma
Secondary Brain Tumors: This type originate from cancer cells in another area of the body.
The most common secondary brain tumors include:
Hemangiosarcoma
Mammary carcinoma
Melanoma
Oncologist Appointment
We arrive to her new doctor in Culver City, CA the next day. Her Oncologist said the same thing as the Neurologist maybe a month, maybe a day, maybe an hour until she passes. “I told him to fuq off.” (in my head, not literally.. even though I wanted to.)
He showed us her MRI scan and went into detail of her tumor and told us that is impossible to operate on it and suggest radiation. My thoughts on radiation were so mixed, because I know how hard it is on humans so imagined it would be just as bed for tiny fur-babies. He mentioned radiation for her type of tumor is a big question mark and a higher risk. Every time she would have the treatment they would have to put her under and because she died before it is very dangerous. He also said that there are many dogs that live for months after and some that pass away after a couple of months. I told him that we would go home to discuss everything and let him know our decision. (Also, treatment was a total of $16,000.)
Advice
Don’t ever give up, if you have a feeling that your vet is not doing the most they could for your loved one. GET A SECOND OPINION. I will never know if it could have been different if we found out sooner, but losing her the first day like that was the worst.
I’m going to post about what treatments we decided with and what medicine she was on. Keep fighting for your babies, you are the only hope they have.
-M & Izzy
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