Bone cancer

[selah]

We just found out that our boy Brutus has bone cancer in his right front leg. He is 7 (will be 8 next month) and has been in the best of health his whole life. He is a large newf (very tall) but very fit at 141 pounds. We see the oncology specialist tomorrow monring, but our regular vet recommends amputation followed by chemo. Do any of you know of a newf who had a good quality of life as a tripod? I'm especially interested in hearing about any with an amputation of the front leg. From what I am reading it is harder for larger dogs and I don't want him to be uncomfortable.

Also, we are going to talk to the specialist about limb sparing surgery tomorrow-- anyone have experience with that?

It's really hard to know what is the best thing to do for him. I don't want him to be in pain for the rest of his life, but I also am not ready to give up on him.

 

[Keira25]

I'm so sorry you and Brutus are going through this. I do not have experience with this, but have never heard of a Newfie that was able to get around on 3 legs. Not saying it never happens, I just would imagine it would be extremely difficult. I think the question to ask the oncologist is what is the prognosis for him? If you are looking at a year, and the vast majority would be spent recovering from surgery/chemo, is this the quality of life you want for Brutus? Hopefully the oncologist will be honest with you about everything and will give you enough information so you can make a decision that's best for you and Brutus. Maybe someone with actual experience will chime in here......

 

[jane]

A specialist I took a friend and her newf to, said that once symptoms show it is too far into the cancer and he does not amputate because the dog, still, does not have much time left. That woman went to another surgeon, who did remove the leg and the boy passed away 2 months later.
I have known a few who have amputated and the dog did well on 3 legs, but they didn't go on to live long healthy lives. They still passed away from the cancer.
What you have to look at is quality of life.
Sending lots of big hugs for your boy...

 

[Mjwalters17]

I know this is a Newfie forum but we lost one of our Goldens to this several years ago. She was 9 and we decided that as mush as we loved her that her quality of life would just suffer too much as an amputee on chemo. She survived for several months and our vet came to the house and put her to sleep. It is hard a very hard decision no matter which way you decide to go, I hope things go as best they can for you.

 

[ElvisTheNewf]

I have a great coworker who owned a Bernese Mountain Dog. He got cancer in his front leg, they amputated it, and he lived for another year.....but she has said over and over again that she would never do it again. He had horrible pain issues - I guess dogs can get phantom pain? - and was miserable for about 6 months after the surgery.

Every situation and dog is different, but like Jane said I'd focus more on quality of life than quantity.

I'm sorry you're going through this.

 

[lmfoltyn]

What a decision to have to make...as the others I don't have any experience with this but would agree that the quality of life is the main point. It is just lousy that you and your love are having to go through this...we lost our Dexter last Sept. rather quickly but I didn't want to prolong his life which would have included suffering. It seriously just sucks that our babies get sick and leave us way to soon...

 

[victoria1140]

There is a site called tripawds that may help.also get some good rubber backed mats for grip and stability.

Also Google ketogenic diets as some cancers do well on this.if you are interested pm me and can give you some more info.

Also apocaps,cv247,k9 immunity plus supplement,artemesinin, turmeric can be used as supplements.

Ask about metronomic chemotherapy as well,it works on the principle of less is more and that you can sometimes live with the cancer and control it.

If you use chemotherapy ask about carboplatin rather than doruxibin(think l have spelt last one right).

Carboplatin gives less side effects but is more expensive.

There is a book by Damien dressler who is known as the cancer vet,can be downloaded via kindle and is a good read.

my boy has soft tissue cancer and he is just coming up to his second birthday and he can't be amputated on as 3/4 of his pelvis would need to go as well.since his diagnosis he has had palliative radiotherapy and is going to see a holistic vet as we are treating him homeopathically as well.

If you decide to amputate have you thought about a doggy wheelchair to help him get around.l use one on my gsd who has cdrm and its made a huge difference on her walks and it isn't that awkward once you get used to it.

Also huge hugs as l know l felt highly emotional when given my boys diagnosis in march.l always said l don't want to look back and in hindsight say l never tried something but its a very personal journey and for me its also about quality of life.

 

[Jager's Mom]

Just curious if the vet took xrays of the lungs? (to see if the cancer is there yet)

 

[dreamchaser456]

So sorry to hear about the cancer. I have one that is now 11 and has soft tissue sarcoma on right elbow. We decided not to do surgery since the only was to get clean margins was amputation and at 10 she was too old to adapt. We opted for loving her as long as we can and it's been over a year and she's still doing well. It's not the same prognosis as bone cancer as that seems to spread much more rapidly but I would look seriously at quality of life in considering what to do. You are in our prayers as you deal with this.

 

[selah]

Thank you everyone for the information and sharing your personal experiences. We met with the oncologist this morning and I am feeling hopefully optimistic at this point.

They did do an xray of the lungs and see no signs of the cancer there, but they are going to send the pictures to another expert for a second opinion, and we should receive that input tomorrow. They also opted to do an ultrasound of his abdomen to ensure there were no signs of the cancer in another other vital organs and that all looked good.

Since his cancer in the in the lower part of the ulna bone (the smaller one, which does not hold most of the weight), they recommended a less common surgery to just remove the impacted part of the bone. They do not replace it with a metal rod (like they would if it were in the radius), it basically is just cut and off and floating in there. Seems totally crazy, but they said dogs can live without it. Since this is not very typical, they could not tell me survival rates in comparison to amputation, but there is a risk of the cancer coming back in the same bone and ultimately having to consider the amputation again in the future. However, we are willing to take this risk since I think he will be more comfortable on 4 legs. Surgery is scheduled for Thursday assuming everything comes back okay tomorrow.

Thanks again all. I will keep you updated.

Now I am off to google the ketogenic diet! Thanks for the info Victoria1140! We do have him on K9 immunity (as of Saturday), as recommended by our raw feeding group. I will look up the other info about chemo-- we have a couple more weeks to research all of that!

 

[mudji]

HATE osteosarcoma... Too many of our kids are lost to this dreaded disease. Sending lots of positive energies!

hannah

 

[victoria1140]

Go for the k9 immunity plus.its more concentrated and also easier to give.

Also essiac herbs and artemisinin as a holistic supplement and we boosted with aloe vera juice for its regenerative properties.there has been some work with stem cells but still inconclusive.

Any info on ketogenic just ask and will give you as much info as possible.we have gone away from all processed foods so if you can imagine my oh picking up the commercial mincer - nearly gave him a hernia.

We also bought a food processor and dehydrator.

All water given is kept in the fridge in Glass jugs for a few hours before being given.

Talked to a holistic vet today and he reccomends either food grade stainless feed bowls or ceramic.enviromentally friendly cleaning products.
Some things are unavoidable like wifi but dont mind limiting certain things.

 

[MC Sullivan]

I do know there are different types of bone cancer and I would factor that into any decision. Hugs to you and Brutus for whichever tough decision you make.

 

[DAWNMERIE]

This post has had me choked up for days. It truly broke my heart over 20 yrs ago, and still does to this day. CANCER SUCKS! My boy had bone cancer in his right front wrist and amputation was not a consideration due to his awful hips. Many have walked in your shoes, please know we are here for support, if you should need us.

I do agree with Jane on the quality of life, I would hate the thought of taking a newf's leg to only have them pass shortly after and have a miserable end instead of living the best way possible. My boys cancer progressed very rapidly and his pain was extreme. I wish you the best of luck and the best of days loving your pup, whatever route you choose. ((HUGS))

 

[selah]

Update: Yesterday the surgeon performed the Ulnar ostectomy (I think that is how it is spelled). They called us with an update and said that the procedure took a little longer than expected, not because of any complications but because there was so much prep work and there were multiple bags of fur shaved off

He stayed over night at the hospital and apparently he didn't eat much last night, but this morning he was pacing around without limping! That is amazing to me. Prior to surgery we were told he may need to stay 2 nights, but he checked out so well this morning that he can come home this morning!

Everything is looking really great so far. I'm hoping the recovery from this surgery is fairly easy and he is pain free for now. Next step, biopsy results and then we go from there.

 

[Brandie&Maggie]

Update: Yesterday the surgeon performed the Ulnar ostectomy (I think that is how it is spelled). They called us with an update and said that the procedure took a little longer than expected, not because of any complications but because there was so much prep work and there were multiple bags of fur shaved off

He stayed over night at the hospital and apparently he didn't eat much last night, but this morning he was pacing around without limping! That is amazing to me. Prior to surgery we were told he may need to stay 2 nights, but he checked out so well this morning that he can come home this morning!

Everything is looking really great so far. I'm hoping the recovery from this surgery is fairly easy and he is pain free for now. Next step, biopsy results and then we go from there.

So glad to hear the surgery went well and you have your boy home! Will be keeping you both in our thoughts and prayers.

 

[nowhavethreebears]

Glad to hear there was such a positive early outcome. Continued prayers that things go well for your boy. Please keep us updated.

 

[dreamchaser456]

Glad the surgery went well and he got to come home early! Will continue to keep you in our prayers.

 

[Ginny]

So sorry you and your boy are going through this. I hope the surgery is successful and that you have a lot more quality time with him.

At what age did you neuter him?

 

[selah]

At what age did you neuter him?

We neutered him at just over 2.5 years old. We had planned to wait until 3 per a recommendation from the breeder, but he started marking where he shouldn't (like inside other people's houses!) and was a little unruly around female dogs. I read that neutered dogs are far more likely to get bone cancer.

He sprained his wrist on the same side a few years ago. I had read that perhaps an injury to the bone could be the cause as well. It's an interesting concept.