Dog Prostate Cancer Treatment

by Wimmer
(Houston tx)

We adopted our beagle 4 years ago, he is currently 5 1/2 years old. Last week I noticed he was having problems taking a stool. He also had a fever. I took him that night to a 24 hour emergency clinic, since then we have been seeing different veterinarians and an oncologist. After a biopsy, multiple test and x rays we were told our beagle has prostate cancer (they think it is traditional cell carcinomas).

Below is his current treatment plan. Considering his age and early detection (it had not spread to anywhere in the lungs) do you think we will be able to keep him with us for a few more years?

Will his age work to his advantage?

Treatment:

Vinblastine injection once every 2 weeks
Piroxicam. Once a day (oral) 5 mg
Cyclophosphamide 5mg once a day (oral)

Any advice you can provide is greatly appreciated.



Thanks in advance,

Chris and Lynnsey



Vet Suggestion Dog Prostate Cancer Treatment


Hi Chris and Lynnsey,

I’m sorry to hear about your dog’s prostate cancer. I am a general practitioner, not an oncologist, so I must defer to your dog’s specialists regarding the details of his case. I can give you some general information, however.

Several different protocols are in common use to treat transitional cell carcinoma of the prostate in dogs. Many doctors start with mitoxantronein combination with piroxicam. If that does not work, doxorubicin, carboplatin, vinblastine,and/or vinorelbine can all be tried. It is not unusual to start with one protocol and when the disease stops responding, move on to another set of drugs. Cyclophosphamide seems like an unusual choice for transitional cell cancer of the prostate, but again, I’m not familiar with the details of your dog’s case.

Another option to consider is radiation therapy. A recent study showed that dogs treated with radiation therapy tended to survive for about 20 months after diagnosis, which is approximately twice as long as what is typically seen with chemotherapy alone.



Best of luck,

Jennifer Coates, DVM