October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, a time to raise awareness of a disease that strikes 13% of women, and to educate folks about screening and prevention. But did you know that your pet can also develop breast cancer?
A pet – dog or cat – might not show signs right away, but you may be able to feel a mass or lump on their abdomen. As the cancer progresses, you might notice lethargy, weight loss, coughing, loss of appetite.
Mammary tumors in pets can be benign or malignant. Your veterinarian can do a biopsy to determine which. Depending on the results your vet may refer you to a veterinary oncologist. Treatment might include surgery, chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Keep in mind that pets have multiple mammary glands but in dogs it is rare to remove more than the just one that is affected. In cats mammary tumors are rarely benign; in fact they are so aggressive that the recommended treatment is radical mastectomy surgery, which means removal of the chain of all four mammary glands on the affected side.
The prognosis for a pet with breast cancer is what you might expect. The earlier you find it, the more effective the treatment. And after surgery, your vet may recommend x-rays or ultrasounds at least twice a year, or more often depending on the type of cancer.
So what can you do to protect your pet from developing breast cancer? The short answer is spay or neuter your pet. For females, the recommendation is to spay your female dog or cat before its first heat cycle. One statistic says spaying before six months of age reduces the risk of cancer by 91%! If done before your pet reaches its first birthday, the risk is still reduced by 86%.
So check your pet’s abdomen periodically for any lumps; talk to your veterinarian about any concerns you have. And spay your female dog or cat – it may save her life, when you’re speaking of pets.
__>^..^<__
