I am starting this page in memory of my dog who was diagnosed with Mast Cell Tumours twice. I am un
Dietary changes
There are quite a few diets that I came across and I feel like each owner can only pick the best one they would like to try.
I will list them
- Cleo's diet from 'Holistic Help for Dogs with Mast Cell Cancer' facebook group
- Dr Budwig's https://www.budwig-diet.co.uk/dogs/
- Dr Dressler
https://dogcancerbook.com/
The second medication I wish I knew about, well it is actually a category of medication which is in the histamine H₂ receptor antagonist in the form of an antacid.
Again, freely available in the USA. Just not in Australia but can be purchased online.
The two I used was
💥 Famotidine - my boy needed an antacid before MCT came but when I requested Famotidine my vet did relucantly order it as a compounded medication. It was the antacid I wanted and my vets interest in it was zero but since he needed it anyway, my vet did order it in.
💥 Cimetadine - is in the same class of medication histamine H₂ receptor antagonist.
There are multiple reputable websites that even our vets refer to that mention these drugs for used in the treatment of MCT and have merit.
My vet denied both and so I had to find a vet that did not ignore this and had fight for my boy to get them.
As with any medication it may not suit your dog but most often one of the two helps.
For support I found in the 'Holistic Help for Dogs with Mast Cell Cancer' facebook group for dosage and/or support. Dosage is in pounds so you will need to convert to mg and kg weight of your dog. I was warned that long term Cimetidine use could affect kidney function.
I wish I had known about the two medications and felt more confident using them in the early days. It took finding a different vet to have the medication script completed. For what is freely available for even humans in America to take.
- So the first medication was an antihistamine. It needed to be a 'H1 histamine blocker' I used Diphenhydramine (in America they call it 'Benadryl' - this is where I want to put up a warning - 💥Benadryl from the USA is not the same as Australian Benadryl💥. Not even remotely close. 💥Never use Benadryl from Australia on dogs💥).
This medication can be made up via a compounding pharmacist if your vet works with you on this and is willing.
If not ordering it online is possible.
Dosage I will not advise on. I would suggest joining a facebook group called 'Holistic Help for Dogs with Mast Cell Cancer' for that information if your vet is not onboard.
I wish I had known
- that prednisone was a drug that could have been used as soon as it was known (in suspect cases it can be used before fine needle aspirates or removal)
- that any poking, squeezing or prodding the mass can make it 'angry' and 'degranulate' and send chemicals around our dogs body and they can create stomach upsets ir ulcers.
- To help reduce the side effect of 'degranulation symptoms' two category of medications that are basic and except for being in Australia, we could buy them over the counter at any pharmacy. They are that low interest that you can get them imported. My vet made me feel like an alien for ever asking for them. Even though my dog required an antacid and antihistamine for other health issues.
It is hard to know where to start because there is so much to cover and compared to what I knew at the beginning compared to wait I know now is huge.
I guess anyone reading this would have had the same experience at first hearing those words though.
For me it was unexpected news as my dog had a lump on his lip. My vet didn't even suspect it was MCT. It was only lucky that I opted to send the lump off for histopathology (where you get an indepth report on what the lump is).
It helps give you and your vet an idea of how aggressive the tumour is and how quickly it is replicating it's cells. Histopathology can also evaluate if the lump is removed with 'clean margins' and the tumour is removed entirely.
My boy's resulta came back as clean margins. My vet wanted better margins though as this cancer is notorious at coming back.
My boy underwent a second surgery to try to get better margins eveb though it was in a tricky location.
Something I learnt much later was that the location of the tumour (his lip) meant it had a high probability of reoccurring, clean margins or not.
Also, clean margins did not necessarily mean that. MCT is described as an octopus like cell and their 'tentacles' may not have been fully removed.
My boy was considered 'cancer free' after his second surgery.
That only lasted a year before his lymph node became hard and raised.
It may take me a bit to put out all the information I found along the way. So in the mean time if you are looking for help or just anything really. Feel free to send a message though. It is daunting to hear the words 'your dog has Mast cell Cancer'
After my dog being diagnosed of Mast Cell Tumour and through many hours and days of research on my own did I slowly learn about this type of cancer.
I am unsure of anyone will ever come across this page but if someone does, I hope they will find some of the information useful.
If by chance you are reading this and your dog has just been diagnosed with Mast Cell Tumour, I know your head will be overwhelmed with the news and desperately trying to figure out what this diagnosis means. Unfortunately the answers are not simple and the options are many. Whatever you choose will be right for you and your dog though. There is no one way to treat a dog with this disease.
Your vet should be your guide in this, but if by chance your vet is not, my first piece of advice is find one who is. This will ensure you and your dog are not alone in this battle with Mast Cell Tumour.
In no way does the information I provide substitute for vet advice. This is purely to provide a central place for dog owners to build their own awareness surrounding this disease.
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