All Entries Tagged With: "Dog Bone Cancer"
How Dog Bone Cancer is Diagnosed
If your dog has Bone Cancer, it will show itself in the swelling of bones and pain in the joints. The tumors in bone cancer appear in areas where the growth plates are at constant activitity. The limbs and joints of Large dog breeds are particularly affected. A dog that has bone cancer would be unable to properly walk, run, or enjoy activities they previously did without any trouble.
Diagnosis
Knowing which dog breeds are susceptible to bone cancer allows us to monitor and examine them early on for signs of an onslaught of this illness. There are specific bone patterns identifiable in X-rays that could be an indication of bone cancer.
A biopsy of bone tumors through surgical sampling is required for a diagnosis of bone cancer. This procedure is often considered difficult, however, because of possible complications. The bone marrow biopsy needle is another and less invasive approach to bone cancer diagnosis. It is inserted into a small area of the tumor in the bone.
Knowing which dog breeds are susceptible to bone cancer allows us to monitor and examine them early on for signs of an onslaught of this illness. There are specific bone patterns identifiable in X-rays that could be an indication of bone cancer.
In addition, bone cancer could also be the result of the other forms of cancer metastasizing from other areas of the body. For primary diagnosis of this illness, however, these possibilities should be ruled out temporarily.
Who Does Dog Bone Cancer Target?
Which dogs are affected by Dog Bone Cancer? Our dog breeds are classified into Toy, Small, Medium, and Large or Giant.
Which dogs are affected by Dog Bone Cancer? Our dog breeds are classified into Toy, Small, Medium, and Large or Giant.
While every dog in one way or another is susceptible to certain kinds of cancer, breeds that are at higher risk of getting Bone Cancer are those that weigh over 80 pounds. These dogs are 60 times more likely to develop Bone Cancer than dogs that weigh less than 75 pounds.
Dogs with this weight are categorized as Giant or Large breeds and that the males are at higher risk of getting Bone Cancer than the females.
Some of the Giant or Large Breeds that are at high risk of developing Bone Cancer are:
Bernese Mountain Dogs
Boxers
Dobermans
German Shepherds
Golden Retrievers
Great Danes
Great Pyrenees
Irish Wolfhounds
Labradors
Newfoundlands
All these dogs listed above are noted for their exceptional dispositions and sweet attitudes. Giant breeds tend to be quite loving and docile, and it is a shame to lose one of them to Bone Cancer.
What Causes Dog Bone Cancer?
Theories about why Bone Cancer develops:
Rapidly growing cells at the growth plates of bones are at higher risk of genetic mutation.
Tumors may develop at an area where trauma has occurred because of the increased cellular activity at the affected area.
Rapidly growing cells at the growth plates of bones are at higher risk of genetic mutation. Tumors may develop at an area where trauma has occurred because of the increased cellular activity at the affected area.
It is also observed that neutered dogs are twice as likely to acquire Bone Cancer. Old age and an increasing height are also considered as risk factors in the development of this disease. Apparently, these tumors appear in dogs between ages 2 to 8.
Understanding the Risk Factors of Cancer
While there is a higher risk for Giant breeds to acquire Bone Cancer due to genetics, other factors may also contribute in the abnormalities, mutation or defects in the growth plates. These risk factors are Carcinogens.
Carcinogens are substances that can interrupt the normal metabolic or growth process of cells in the body therefore creating abnormal cells that eventually sum up to become tumors.
These Carcinogens may be found in products such as industrial cleaning products, house cleaning products, and even food. The pesticides, fertilizers, additives, and fillers that are used in the processing of food, whether human food or dog food, all sum up to contribute a staggering amount of carcinogens that humans and animals consume alike.
Carcinogens may also come from radiation, X-ray, Teflon, asbestos and more.
These carcinogens, when they have entered the body, will create chemical and biological reactions that may lead to abnormal cell growths.
An Introduction to Dog Bone Cancer: What Exactly Is It?
It doesn’t take a veterinarian or animal expert to know that cancer, any type of cancer, hinders your dog’s optimum performance. It could be dog sports competitions, professional dog shows, or just plain having fun with you and your family. A healthy dog walks, runs, chases, cuddles, and frolics without any discomfort or pain, and that is possible only because he or she is happy and free from sickness or debilitating disease. A dog with Bone Cancer, however, could appear lame or crippled as a result of this painful, unforgiving illness.
What is Dog Bone Cancer?
What is Dog Bone Cancer? Bone Cancer is also known by the term Osteosarcoma. These are tumors that commonly affect the limbs of giant dog breeds.
Bone Cancer is also known by the term Osteosarcoma. These are tumors that commonly affect the limbs of giant dog breeds. To a lesser percentage, it affects the skull, ribs, vertebrae and pelvis of smaller breeds. Bone Cancer tumors are deemed highly aggressive. They invade and destroy normal cells aggressively, and in some cases, they metastasize, meaning they travel to other organs in the body through the bloodstream, over far distances.
While bone cancer constitutes only 5% of all canine tumor incidences, a staggering 80-90% of malignant cancer cases include the bone. What’s more alarming is, this sort of cancer requires the amputation of the affected area, together with chemotherapy (which only gives temporary relief to the suffering pet).
Continue reading the next article to find out more:
