I'm so sorry to hear about this as bone cancer is a hard one to cope with.
What I found when I researched this for my dog was that the options all had pluses and minuses.
You can use pain meds such as Metacam to keep the dog comfortable as long as possible.
You can do radiation which will take the pain away but is costly.
You can have surgery to remove the leg.
I opted for pain meds and had my dog 6 more happy weeks.
My friend did radiation and it did take the pain away until the day the dog's leg broke about 4 months later.
Surgery seems to give dogs 2-6 months after recovery but often the cancer has small spots spread through the body that will suddenly grow when the main tumor is removed.
Not all big dogs can handle going tripod either.
There are no great choices.
Some people feel they are getting more from alternative medicine in conjunction with the traditional treatments.
I got this protocol from someone who was having success with her dog with it
Here is my protocol of supplements All twice daily unless noted differently.
Anti oxidants:
Thorne Geriatric Canine Vitamins
Added 1000 mg Vit C
Added 400 mg Vit E once daily
pau D Arco 2 capsules
IP 6 2 capsules
Anticancer activity
Hoxsey formula 3 capsules
Artemisinin 400 mg
Anti pain management
Derramax 100 mg twice daily ( often able to alternate 50 mg one day, then 100 mg the next day. Other drugs that you could use include Rimadyl,Piroxicam, Meloxicam or Etogesic. Yes, ALL these drugs ahave issues with specific dogs. Some dogs have trouble tolerating them and they have GI up set episodes. A small percentage of dogs have SERIOUS reactions to them.
So start on a smaller dose and watch very carefully for ANY symptom for the fist week of administration. Usually you can find one that a dog can tolerate.
Corydalis 3-4 capsules twice daily. We never knew if it was the Fosamax, the corydalis or the combination, but the dog was virtually pain free for MONTHS! Call around to local herb shops...those specializing in Chinese herbs should be more successful.
We had her on the Fosamax protocol of 70 mg every other day and none of the herbs or meds were contraindicated. I also had acupuncture done for her once every two weeks.
Arteminisin is wormwood
and this info is out on the IW website
You don't need to belong to the IW Club to avail yourself of the information being gathered by The Irish Wolfhound Foundation. You can get to the newsletter online. The latest issues (2004) deal with Osteosarcoma. Web site is
http://www.iwfoundation.org/Index.htm
Hope this helps you!
Edited by NHolmes on September 6 2005 at 1:55pm__________________
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