Inky, a beautiful full pedigree labrador, was diagnosed with mast cell tumors at the age of ten. He underwent several operations to remove the lumps, but then his vet and his owner, Jay, agreed that it was not a good idea to put him through further surgery.
The decision was taken for Inky to start a course of chemotherapy at the University of Glasgow's Small Animal Hospital.
Chemotherapy for Mast Cell tumors
Inky started chemo five months after being diagnosed with mast cell tumours. A year after the initial diagnosis, Inky's condition had been stabilised and he was enjoying his life almost to the full.
Speaking in June 2010, eight months after Inky started a course of chemotherapy, his owner Jay said: 'He is doing really well. I'm so glad I decided to go ahead with the chemo. He reacted well to it at the time. It started in October and finished in December and he has had no more since then.'
Stabilising Cancer in Labradors
'Once his condition had stabilised, I decided not to let him have any further treatment, because, although he had reacted well to the initial treatment, he had come to dislike going to the vet school.'
'The people there were lovely to him, but as a labrador he suffers from separation anxiety, and I think he just got fed up of being left for an hour or so without his mummy and getting prodded about.'
Because he was also on steroids at the time of having his treatment, this really did give him a new lease of life. He seemed to think he was a puppy again, and would zoom about all over. It was wonderful to see.'
'Now, without the steroids he has quietened down a lot, but he is behaving like any 11-year-old labrador would do.'
Continuing Chemo in Dogs - Making the Decision
Jay went on: 'It really is a balancing act. Inky has terrible arthritis and problems with his hips as well as a condition in his larynx that sometimes makes it difficult for him to breathe. I decided that having got this golden time with him, this gift of extra life with him, the best thing I can do is let him enjoy that and eventually let God and Nature decide the rest.'
'Eight months after having the chemo he is happy and well. He sleeps a lot, but I think that is mostly to do with his arthritis, for which he takes a daily dose of Metacam painkiller.
'We are now staying on a ground floor with a massive garden, so he doesn't have to be bothered with meeting other dogs who are too boisterous for him and he has a peaceful, worry-free life of pottering about at his own pace.'
Making the decision to have chemo and how Inky reacted to the treatment.
Jacqueline Wake - Jacqueline Wake has been a newspaper journalist for 18 years, working on a number of national titles in the UK such as The Daily Mail, The ...
