Fine Needle Aspirate
How Do You Know If Your Dog Has Cancer for Sure? Read Chapter 9: How We Diagnose and Stage Cancer
How do you know if your dog has cancer? Well, no one can tell by look or feel. You have to test. Learn how veterinarians diagnose and stage cancer.
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Lumps On Dogs: When To Get Them Checked By A Veterinarian
Finding lumps on dogs is scary, but waiting to get them checked is a terrible idea. The sooner you know what it is, the better. Get the guidelines now.
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Video: Lump on Dog? Here’s What You Need to Know
Don’t wait — aspirate. Dr. Susan Ettinger helped Dr. Andy Roark with this excellent, informative video about WHY we should ask our vets to test each bump or lump.
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Don’t Forget Your Dog at the Veterinarian
When booking a new consultation with me, pet Guardians often ask if it is necessary to bring their dog to the appointment. From their point of view, they are often concerned about the stress of the visit on their pet, or maybe the travel itself. But from my point of view, a consultation without the…
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Checking Your Dog for Anal Gland Cancer
Unseen Does Not Mean Undetectable It’s great to develop a habit of performing regular check-ups of our dog’s body by physically running our hands down their legs, looking in their ears, and sneaking in some extra neck rubs while we feel for lumps and bumps. Some dangers however, develop internally. Knowing how to detect these…
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How Important Are All Those Expensive Diagnostic Dog Cancer Tests?
You could easily spend over $1,000 just to diagnose your dog’s cancer. Are any of those tests worth it? Which ones?
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Common Dog Cancer Mistake: Doing Too Many Diagnostic Tests Before Seeing the Oncologist
When you first hear your dog has cancer, you may panic and feel that everything must be done, and now. It’s true, cancer is an urgent situation, and it’s a great idea to find out as much information about your dog’s cancer as is possible. But how many diagnostic tests should you have your vet…
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Prednisone for Dogs: When to Start with Lymphoma
Prednisone for dog lymphoma may be recommended. It’s true, it treats lymphoma, and is used a lot in chemo. BUT … using it too soon could be a mistake.
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Five Common Mistakes with Cancer Surgery, and How To Avoid Them In Your Dog
These are the five most common mistakes with cancer surgery. Read on to find out how to save both time and money (yes, really).
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Primary Lung Tumors, part 2
Unlike people where lung cancer is one of the top five cancers and the leading cause of cancer related deaths worldwide, primary lung cancer is very rare in dogs. Dogs are often diagnosed with lung cancer as in incidental finding during a routine geriatric screen. Lung Cancer Symptoms in Dogs Often dogs have NO clinical signs,…
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DogCancer.TV: Dog Cancer Surgery When is Surgery a Good Option
In this video, Dr. Dressler and Dr. Ettinger discuss their perspectives on surgical treatment of dog cancer and the different types of surgery that maybe performed.
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DogCancer.TV: Soft Tissue Sarcomas- What You Need to Know About Your Dog’s Cancer
Dr. Dressler and Dr. Ettinger discuss the detection, diagnosis, and Full Spectrum Care Approach to treating soft tissue sarcomas in dogs.
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DogCancer.TV: Diagnosing Dog Cancer with a Biopsy or Fine Needle Aspirate
In this informative video, Dr. Dressler and Dr. Ettinger discuss and describe fine needle aspirates and biopsy as techniques used by veterinarians in the diagnosis of dog cancer.
Read ArticleHow Long to “Watch and Wait”
Last week I told you about two recent cases in which the tumors were too big for surgery by the time they came to me. I also promised to give you some guidelines about how long to wait when your vet says “let’s just monitor this.” Too many lumps and bumps are being monitored for…
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Staying Vigilant with Mass Aspirates
Should you really get EVERY lump checked? Dr. Susan Ettinger, DVM, Dip. ACVIM (Oncology) explains why we should all stay vigilant with mass aspirates and get everything checked.
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Can Needle Biopsy Spread Cancer?
Can needle biopsy or fine needle aspirates spread cancer? As always when it comes to dog cancer, there is no “one right answer.” Dr. Dressler, DVM goes over the facts.
Read ArticleNot All Soft Lumps are Lipomas!
Many times dog lovers will be told that their dog’s soft lump is a fatty tumor, and is no problem. The veterinarian is usually thinking about lipomas, benign tumors made of fat that may be genetic in dogs. This information is not always correct, and sometimes the mistake is life threatening. Although it is true…
Read ArticleLymphoma – what you need to know BEFORE you see the oncologist
In my last blog post on lymphoma, I shared that I would personally treat my dog with a multi-agent chemotherapy protocol if she was diagnosed with lymphoma. You will learn a lot about diagnostics and treatment options once you meet an oncologist, so in this blog post, I will share some of the things you…
Read ArticleHow to Get A Diagnosis Before Surgery
There are several different ways of finding out if a lump is a cancer. Each involves having some of the growth tested, but which is best? There are several ways to collect a sample. Often a biopsy is done. A biopsy involves collecting a piece of the growth for analysis. Sometimes the growth is removed…
Read ArticleAn Overview of What Else Can I Do?
The most common question I receive is: My dog has cancer. What else can I do? Well, this is a very short question that needs a very long answer. I will do my best to give the big categories here. First, get the data you need. A real guardian needs information to make aware decisions. …
Read ArticleSigns 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 ArticleHelp! 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 ArticleSigns of Dog Cancer and Decompensation
People are often stunned to find out their dog has cancer. Why? Because cancer seems to hit out of the blue. I often hear “but he’s been fine until the last couple days!” In this article, I’m going to take just a minute to explain why “cancer” seems to happen overnight. (Hint: it’s because of…
Read ArticleWhy Is There No Standard of Care?
I was recently sent an interesting question from a reader about the right way to deal with a lump. The question revolved around standard veterinary practices upon finding an external mass in a dog. Is it correct to simply monitor and wait for a cancer to grow before doing something about it? Good question! The…
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Lipoma and Liposarcoma in the Dog: Fatty Tumors
Is that soft squishy lump on your dog something to worry about? It depends.
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