Dog Brady with Oral Melanoma

Dog Brady with Oral Melanoma

by CJ

Hi,

Our 8 year old lab named Brady is struggling with an oral melanoma.

Our Vet found it at a routine checkup at the beginning of July. At the time it was about 1/2 the size of a dime. Unfortunately it was on the upper jaw in the back. The vet said they would not be able to remove it without "getting creative".

A canine oncologist told us if we gave her the most aggressive treatment protocol possible she might live a year. He said without treatment they thought she might have six months.

We chose not to let the vet "get creative" or put her through the treatments.

Approximately 6 weeks later it is shocking how fast the mass has grown. It is now approximately half the size of a tennis ball all along her left upper jaw and on her snout.

She has withdrawn some, no longer plays ball, and will start to spontaneously start gushing blood from the mass. It is troubling for my wife and I, but more troubling for our two kids (6 and 5) to see this.

She is also now having frequent diarrhea and panting, and is restless at night.

All that being said she is still walking fine. She will still greet me at the door when I come home from work with a wagging tail, and being her lab self she is still eating.

It is very hard to figure out when it is "time". I don't want her to be in a lot of pain, and can't really tell if she is.

If anybody has advice, my wife and I would love to hear it.

CJ

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Dog Brady with Oral Melanoma

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Aug 25, 2011
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Apollo
by: Anonymous

My boy was diagnosed in Sept 2010 and has had 3 surgeries to remove the tumor. I agree it is amazing how quickly they grow and the incisions can be ghastly.

Now I am afraid it is time. He had a seizure 2 weeks ago and couldn't walk - his back legs just won't work the way his mind wants them to - even before we witnessed the seizure I think he'd had others because the back end issue wasn't new.

However... and here's the rub ... He still eats and except recent constipation his other bodily functions are ok. Today we took him fishing because he loves getting out and he was fine on the car ride, but whined almost the entire time by the river. But my brave, tough boy never lets you know where it hurts, you know?

I love him dearly but don't want to unnecessarily torture him for my loss.

Oh and he was a rescue at 1 year 1 day old...he will be 13 October 1st.

I can't put him thru surgery again and the mass is back.

So thanks for letting me get all of this off my chest.

Good luck & wishes to all of you.

Aug 22, 2011
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Bailey the Sheltie with Oral Melanoma
by: Anonymous

My sheltie Bailey had a melanoma the size of 1/2 a tennis ball on his jaw which was surgically removed in April. In lieu of cutting out part of his jaw to make sure they got it all, he had 4 weeks of radiation once a week at the University of Wisconsin - Madison vet clinic and 4 treatments with the new melanoma vaccine every 2 weeks which boosts his immune system without side effects.

UW Madison has a new state-of-the-art CT based radiation machine which is amazing - it pinpoints the area of radiation and doesn't hit other areas.

Bailey has been eating a raw diet and is on several supplements to boost his immunity, no drugs, and is doing great! He had bone cancer 2 yrs ago and had a leg removed, but he recovered great from that. Our vets have said the bone cancer and the melanoma were not related.

I hope you can determine a treatment to help your buddy and keep him comfortable.

Aug 15, 2011
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Hang in there
by: Anonymous

I have the same concerns with my dog, who is suffering from osteosarcoma with a large mass on the roof of his mouth. He has some difficulty breathing, bleeding from the tumor as well as the nose; but he too, walks and moves great, goes on walks still, and still eats with gusto... I have his story on this web site as well under Bo.

I had him on prednisone last week and it seemed to relieve some of his difficulty breathing and a lot of the bleeding. While I am not a big fan of prednisone, I do think it has its benefits, especially if it alleviates some of the discomfort; that might help your dog out in some aspects at least.

I also have him on a herbal supplement that is helping his immune system, working from the inside out.

I am not sure how long the mass was growing before it was noticed, out of the three different types of cancer I have witnessed with my pets, I think mouth cancer is by far the worst to watch, it is heartwrenching when you can see them struggle more, especially with breathing or eating or drinking. The masses in their mouths seem to have a mind of their own - my poor baby's looks like hamburger and I know it has to be uncomfortable...

When do you make the dreaded "decision" - that is up to how you think your dog is. I don't think there is a right decision or a wrong one; it's up to you and how you perceive how your dog is doing. When does the quantity outweigh the quality?? A vet cannot tell you that, no matter how many vets you see, it's a judgment call on your part, you know your dog the best. Does his quality of life seem to be doing well?? The loss of blood is unslightly, and very very hard to watch - I know, at the beginning of his diagnosis he was bleeding all over, he would sneeze and it would go flying, on the floor, the walls, the blinds... While I know this is hard to watch, he still has a ton of love and life to give, he still pulls me on our walks, he still greets me at the door, to me those are his normal routine and until he stops doing that, I am holding onto the fact that he will be here for a little while longer.

Think about the norms of your dog's day and if he still does the more of those things that he used to do, then I don't believe it's time. However, you need to be the judge of that.

I feel for you and your family as it is very very hard to deal with. Hang in there, your dog will let you know :)

Aug 12, 2011
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Brady
by: Anonymous

I would definitely consult more than one vet and get more opinions on the pain factor...that will help you make that decision. However I am thinking that your doggie is in pain and out of pain - in pain probably most of the time and out of pain when he sees you because he loves you.

I feel so bad for you and Brady and hope that this helps. It usually helps to hear it from more than one person on the issue.

Good Luck and I pray that Brady isn't in pain :)

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