Articles by Demian Dressler, DVM
Exciting News for Apocaps
When a new approach to medical issues is found, many steps must be completed before it can be officially used for any medical problem. To bring a new contenter all the way to FDA approval, it is estimated that it takes about 15 years and (as a very low estimate) about 50 million dollars. This…
Read MoreSurgery and “Blood Thinning” Drugs and Supplements
The approach in The Dog Cancer Survival Guide, as well as my own personal philosophy concerning problem-solving, is to use what works, regardless of the packaging material. In other words, it makes no difference if the recommendation comes from a conventional (allopathic) vet, or an “alternative” vet, as long as it works, is safe and…
Read MoreNew Technologies for Brain Cancer Coming Up
Brain cancer, both in pets and in people, is very difficult to deal with. First, we have something called the blood-brain barrier. This is not really a wall per se, but is rather just a feature of the tiny blood vessels in the brain. These little capillaries have tight junctions that don’t let things pass…
Read MoreTo Chemo or Not To Chemo?
One of the little known facts about veterinary medicine is that chemotherapy does not cure cancer in dogs, with few exceptions (except transmissible venereal tumor or the very rare lympho or something). I believe that many people are unaware of this fact. So we are left with a treatment modality that has a goal of…
Read MoreFight Cancer With Local Chemotherapy
Many dog lovers hear grim survival statistics after receiving a dog cancer diagnosis, and it is extremely overwhelming. So much so that they go on a search for new and innovative ways to get better odds, longer survival times, and better life quality. Well, the same thing happened to me! Why settle for stats that…
Read MoreMast Cell Tumor Internal Spread
It is important to tell whether or not a dog tumor has spread internally. This question is not only very frightening for a dog lover, but also has some real medical ramifications. So let’s take some time with this concept and mast cell tumors. Mast cell tumors are very common in dogs. They come in…
Read MoreA Dog With Bone Cancer
I couple of months back, I diagnosed a bone tumor in a wonderful dog named Dolly. Dolly is one of the world’s happiest dogs. She is an elderly family member (she would not be happy if I told you her age). She is a Boxer. As many are aware, Boxers are one of the breeds…
Read MoreClinical Trial Enrollment Available
A distressing part of dealing with dog cancer is data on the current standard of care in veterinary medicine for our dogs with this disease. Conventional veterinary care includes chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery, with a little emphasis on diet. The problem we are facing is that most people are a bit surprised at what we…
Read MoreSigns of Brain Cancer In Dogs
Tumors in the brain are very tough for us in veterinary medicine today. There are two reasons for this. One is that they are hard to diagnose without advanced imaging like CT or MRI. These are not available to everyone, since many do not live within a reasonable distance, and they are not cheap. The…
Read MoreIs The Cause of Breast Cancer in the Water?
Many of our female dogs are spayed at a young age. One of the benefits that vets commonly talk about is that early spaying can almost eliminate breast cancer in dogs. We usually call breast cancer mammary cancer in dogs, but we are talking about breast cancer. We now know that early spaying is also…
Read MoreSigns of Dog Lymph Node Cancer
Many find a bump or a lump on their canine companion at home. The first question is usually, “what is this?” Sometimes the second question is, “Is it a gland or a lymph node?” These are good questions. The reason is that glands, or lymph nodes, become swollen for different reasons. Like in people, infection…
Read MoreBreast Cancer Signs in Dogs: What to Look For and How to Think About Mammary Cancer
Finding a lump on your dog’s breast is not good: Learn how to examine your dog for breast cancer and when to head to the veterinarian.
Read MoreThe Sign of Cancer Hidden in Plain Sight
We’ve been looking at signs of cancer. So today, let’s look at a really obvious one that can fool all of us. One of the first things I review during a patient intake is the body weight. Next, I compare this weight with the numbers over the last couple of years. So am I just…
Read MoreA Sign of Dog Cancer to Know About
What are the signs of dog cancer? That’s a tough question. There are internal cancers and there are external cancers. With the external cancers, those that are found in the skin, the space under the skin, superficial muscles, or in bony structures that are close to the outside of the body, many times we see…
Read MoreBut Cancer Treatment at My Dog’s Age?
So many guardians post comments on this blog, asking questions that have to do with age and cancer treatment. Let’s look at this topic today. I have an old dog. What is the right choice for cancer treatment? This central question usually can boil down to whether the life quality negative of the treatment is…
Read More“My Dog Is Limping, But No Pain” – What You Should Know
If you find yourself thinking “my dog is limping but no pain is there,” think again. Limping is a sign you should take seriously.
Read MoreCancer Cure?
Recently I heard the comment that medicine (in my case, veterinary medicine) is primitive. This is a very interesting comment, especially if we are talking about canine cancer. When you are coping with a canine cancer diagnosis, the question of curing cancer comes up frequently. Now, shifting back to this idea about medicine being primitive,…
Read MoreBetter and Longer: End of Life Care
An article in the New England Journal of Medicine was just published that showed that human cancer patients lived both longer and better with hospice care. Patients with a type of lung cancer lived almost 2 months longer with hospice care than those who did not. Similar trends have been seen with other terminal diseases…
Read MoreHelp! Found A Lump On The Dog… Now What?
Dr. Demian Dressler, best-selling author of “The Dog Cancer Survival Guide”, explains exactly what to do when you find a lump on your dog.
Read MoreDifferent Pain, Different Drugs
In some ways physicians have it easy. An MD can ask a human patient, “Are you in pain?” It’s a bit tougher for us animal lovers. Interestingly, we are in the same boat as pediatricians in this way. We have to go by signs, feelings, intuition in some cases. And sometimes the truth is that…
Read MoreUsing Dog Cancer Statistics
The one of the first steps in the plan for helping you with dog cancer in The Guide is data collection. Without data about your dog’s cancer, survival times, life quality during treatment, side effects, costs, nursing care you will be expected to do, your dog’s normal life expectancy and so on, you will be…
Read MoreTreatment Plan Analysis in Real Life
Yesterday, a 13 year old Rottweiler came in to the hospital. She had been limping, and there was a swelling in her front leg, down on the forearm. It was firm and slightly warm to the touch. The area was about 4 inches long. We took X-rays of the sore leg. The films showed a…
Read MoreUrinary Problems And Cyclophosphamide
One of the most common chemotherapy drugs used today is cyclophosphamide. This medication can be given at home, as it comes as a pill that is given by mouth. It can also be given as an injection in the veterinary hospital. One of the side effects that is seen in about 1 in 10 dogs…
Read MoreIs Cancer Caused By Old Age?
Cancer is due to the fact that our dogs are living longer. Right? This was recently stated by a publicly aired news broadcast, by an expert. And the topic was dog cancer. I’m here to tell you that this is incorrect. And as usual, there is ample back-up evidence. But first, some clarifications. In the…
Read MoreThe Inflammatory Diet and Cancer
It turns out that modern changes in our dog’s diets may have a link to cancer development. It is now known that cancer needs inflammation to start, and to get worse. Inflammation is the process where body parts get red, swollen and painful. If we get an injury, inflammation happens as the first step in…
Read MoreDiagnosis of Nasal Tumors
Tumors of the nose and sinus in dogs are often difficult to diagnose at first. These tumors are located inside the nasal passages, invisible to the naked eye, at least in the earlier stages. Many times a guardian will notice that their four legged family member starts to sneeze more often. The first thought can…
Read MoreLatest on Dog Food and Cancer
Is there a link between dog food an cancer? Many feel the answer is yes, and there is evidence to support this link. Today’s post will look at some of the newest thinking on dog food and cancer. First of all, a dog’s wild diet is quite different from that of a modern, commercial diet. …
Read MoreMetronomic Chemotherapy
Traditional chemotherapy is moving in a new direction. In the past, chemotherapy used a strategy called Maximum Tolerated Dose (MTD). Simply put, this is giving the highest dose a patient can handle, ideally without an unacceptable risk of side effects. The reason this strategy is used in cancer medicine is that the drugs we have…
Read MoreCerenia: An Option for Dogs with Vomiting
Cerenia can really help with dogs who are vomiting or getting nauseous. Ask your vet!
Read MoreCalcium Tablets May Contain Carcinogenic Lead
Does calcium matter to a dog with cancer? How about carcinogenic lead? Many dog lovers are feeding their dog The Dog Cancer Diet in The Guide, with very good results. A dog with cancer has a unique metabolism that is totally different from a dog with no cancer. With this in mind, it is clear…
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