Bitch with breast cancer

Dusty87

My OH bitch has been diagnosed with breast cancer today. Shes a bichon and is 14yr old so they are a bit worried. The vet just checked her over (lumps on her belly), and has her in for surgery next week. Should he have done a scan to see has it spread? Or will that be done next week? The dog is fit herself, but has had trouble eating then vomiting a couple of times the last few years. Is breast cancer serious in dogs? Or is it a simple surgery and fixed? I personaly dont have an attachment to the dog but it would be very upseting (obviously) to her and her mother if anything happened. Suppose just looking for info so i can prepare myself for the worst if thats the case.

portgirl123

so sorry to hear, my dog is the same, but one thing puzzling me how can ur vet tell its cancer before he has operated. My girl has been diagnosed with mammory tumor and he says till he operates he can tell which way it will go. he says its 50/50. if i was you to put your mind at rest ring him and see.

boomerang

It depends to what extent the cancer has spread. Sometimes, where there are multiple growths, the dog needs more than one operation - it's called a "mammary strip." If the cancer isn't caught early it can spread to other parts of the body - I have seen it happen. So I would class it as being very serious.

It's the most common cancer in bitches. This is of no help to the dog or her family OP, but just as a point of information, it can be prevented through neutering the bitch before her first season.

She is quite elderly for such an operation, I hope she is in good health otherwise and strong. Best wishes to her for an excellent recovery.

Discodog

Just to remind people that spaying greatly reduces the risks of breast cancer. Luckily when I found my girl's tumour it was small - about the size of a rice crispie. It's a good idea to check you dog thoroughly every month.

seanybiker

Jaysis. I seen this thread title in "new posts" and thought someone was being really heartless.


Hope all goes well with the operation and she is back to normal soon.

Shazanne

My girl got mammary turmours too. The first one was successfully removed, and so was the second and then the third - this was over the space of a year and a half or so. Then she got a fourth one that was inoperable and was cutting off her circulation to her leg, so she had to be pts:( She was over 18 years of age at the time and was deaf and almost blind but she was such a happy little girl and such a battler. Everyone loved her - me and my daughter most of all.
My point to the OP is that this is not an automatic or an immediate death sentence. Toto could have had the fourth tumour removed too if it weren't causing the circulation problems. And she had well over a year of good quality life from the time of her first diagnosis.

Wisco

Assuming she's healthy enough for surgery for removal of the tumours, she may still have a good prognosis. Some mammary tumours are relatively benign- it's definitely worth having biopsies sent off to the lab for analysis- that way you may have a better idea of prognosis and the liklihood of successfull treatment.
Chest xrays can also be taken to see if there's metastasis (spread) as the lungs will often show this before other organs (but not always)- as she'll already be under GA your vet may suggest this anyway.
Good luck.

portgirl123

just to add as well my girl was spayed at 6 months before she came into her first season, so never had a litter and is only 6 yrs old.