Canine Bladder Cancer Surgery Now Chemo?

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I am grateful to find your site, my 11 year old standard poodle was diagnosed in Sept with bladder cancer after peeing blood. He went through the surgery 2 weeks ago and is on prioxycam. I went back to the vet to have his stitches removed and now they are telling me he needs chemo. I was shocked and depressed, as he is my baby. Originally I was told he would have 1 year to 2 after the surgery removed the 5 tumors in his bladder, now they seem grim about his prognosis. Has anyone done the surgery and then did the chemo? I am worried about making him worse, (weakening his immune system) etc., with the chemo. He is eating great! You wouldn't know he was sick other than his frequent urination. thank you.

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Lemondrop

On 10/17/2008 Boscos mom wrote:

I am grateful to find your site, my 11 year old standard poodle was diagnosed in Sept with bladder cancer after peeing blood. He went through the surgery 2 weeks ago and is on prioxycam. I went back to the vet to have his stitches removed and now they are telling me he needs chemo. I was shocked and depressed, as he is my baby. Originally I was told he would have 1 year to 2 after the surgery removed the 5 tumors in his bladder, now they seem grim about his prognosis. Has anyone done the surgery and then did the chemo? I am worried about making him worse, (weakening his immune system) etc., with the chemo. He is eating great! You wouldn't know he was sick other than his frequent urination. thank you.

I think they want to make certain they've gotten the cancer cells that the surgery may have missed. If he's eating well, then he is one step ahead and may tolerate the chemo better. If he has a bad response to the chemo then you may have to make a decision whether you want to continue or not. Good luck to your and your four legged buddy!

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Boscos_mom

Thank you for your response. I am appreciative.

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spanielmom

We have done the surgery and chemo. We gave a lot of thought to the chemo and went ahead because the oncologist explained that tcc starts at the dna level, spreads to the cellular level, then the out of control cells form the tumor. After the tumors are removed, there is still abnormal dna and cells. The chemo is supposed to kill the cells at the cell and dna level. If they are talking about mitoxantrone, that is a pretty mild chemo with few side effects. Mitoxantrone is what we did for 5 treatments. We started k9 immunity and transfer factor after the second chemo and it really strengthened her immune system. By the last chemo treatment her white blood cell count was normal throughout the cycle with no drop at day 10 as usually expected. We also used a holistic product called Bladder Strength that really helped strengthen the bladder too.

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Boscos_mom

Thank you. Where did you get the bladder strength product? A regular health food store? I was told today that he would have roughly 3 months to live without the chemo and with the chemo the average life span with this type of tumor is 10 months. That chemo drug is exactly what they want to use. I am really struggling with what to do next. What a tough situation. We thought the $3,000 surgery would give him roughly 1-2 years, now we are looking at another $3,000 in chemo that will only extend his life in months. How is your dog doing?

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spanielmom

Rachael is 15 yrs old and just had a clean 9 month post surgery ultrasound. We may be doing better than some, but I wonder if your vets are too pessimistic. Bladder Strength is made by Vetri+Science in Essex Junction, VT. www.vetriscience.com. 800-882-9993. We get it from our holistic vet. I don't know if you need a prescription or not, but they can certainly tell you.

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