Anyone have any experience with this? I just learned on Friday that my beloved dog has cancer in his mouth. He had a ct scan and I was told that there is a large tumor that covers part of palate and mouth and goes into his throat.
The tumor has begun to compromise his breathing slightly but for now he is still eating etc and his attitude is very good , he’s just a little more subdued than usual.
The doctors say it’s inoperable other than what was called a “debulking”. We were also told radiation would be required at a cost of $12k, which we cannot do.
We have an appointment today at the oncologist to get the full score with the options.
@Moderator_1
Could you please move to The Menagerie ? Somehow this got posted in the wrong category
Thank you
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So very sorry! What kind of cancer? That may make a difference We had a GSD with osteosarcoma in his mouth, and if it had been discovered earlier, it may have been possible to remove the infected bone, but it had already crossed the centerline of his palate so that wasn’t an option 
We did chemo for quite a while. Did it slow things down? That’s the big question. Prognosis was around 1 year from diagnosis, we got 2. We also used genetic vicodin for pain control (hint, do NOT let a cat get hold of one!)
I will admit we did a few other things that I researched the hell out of to at least be reasonably assured it wouln’t kill him LOL We used raw organic apricot kernels, I don’t remember how many, maybe 6-7 for his 70lb size. We just crushed them and rolled/mixed them in some pill pockets.
We also started an “ancient Chinese secret” (literally!) product when the tumor started bleeding, and that stuff was AMAZING. It also truly did shrink the tumor after a couple of weeks (you should know enough about me by now that I’m very skeptical about these things!) and may have contributed to the extra year we had with him. I’ll have to hunt down the name of it.
When I say it’s literally an ancient secret, it’s so secret that it’s made in several separate mills, and none of the mills knows what goes into it in the others, other than the owner of course.
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I’m so sorry for you and your dog. I haven’t had experience with this type of cancer, but my little elderly spaniel mix, Monkey, whom I’d adopted from the local shelter less than two years earlier, was unexpectedly diagnosed with bladder cancer when I thought she had developed a UTI. The growth was right at the entrance to the urethra so it was slowly choking off the access as it grew.
Like you, I wouldn’t consider the $10k+ cost for radiation that also would only (possibly) prolong her life for a few months—not cure it. And might not do any good at all.
After speaking several times with my vet, on her honest recommendation I decided that we would put Monkey on pain pills and just let her live her life as comfortably as possible until the day the cancer progressed too far. I was coming home at lunch every day to let her out because it was harder for her to empty her bladder, and about a month after the diagnosis she wasn’t able to urinate at all that day. So we went straight to the vet for the final visit.
Whatever you decide will be the right thing for you and your dog. Just remember that these invasive and often painful treatments don’t give animals hope like they do for humans who understand why they’re happening. All they know is that unpleasant treatments are happening to them.
I believe that it’s usually kinder to them to minimize their stress and pain with meds for as long as you can (physically and financially) and then give them the final gift of not letting them suffer. But whatever you decide will be doing what you think is best for him, and I know you’ll be devastated, but hopefully not guilty.
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I’m sorry about your dog’s diagnosis. Three years ago I put down my greyhound who had an inoperable tumor in his jaw. My vet made it clear that it was my decision, but also that there was no advised course of treatment. I spoiled him silly for a week and said goodbye.
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I think that is the way this is going to go unfortunately.
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I have to go look at the paperwork again to see exactly what they called it. I was such a mess I don’t remember. I took him in Thursday am because I thought he had a URI thinking we would get some antibiotics and go home and ended up at the specialist getting a ct scan, so I was really overwhelmed
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I think that palliative care for him will be the answer. His time is pretty short, the tumor is growing into his airway. But I will not allow him to suffer for one second .
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Yes please see if you can find the name of the ancient Chinese secret please…
I found a couple of clinical trials online yesterday and sent off information but I haven’t heard yet
Ah, here it is! Yunnan Baiyao
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/yunnan-baiyao
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I’m so sorry to hear that. I don’t have any personal experience with canine cancer, though I have mentally prepared myself for that diagnosis on a couple occasions. Last winter we surgically removed a nasty oosing lump that ended up being benign, and this past fall when she developed a subtle hind end lameness I knew that osteosarcoma would be on the list of differential diagnoses. Luckily x-rays came back clean.
Anyway, I just wanted to say that I hope everyone around you supports whatever decision you make. Like you I wouldn’t/couldn’t spend $12k on radiation or chemo, especially if it’s essentially palliative. Quality over quantity. I hope your pup has some good days left that you both can enjoy. Spoil him the best that you can.
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FWIW, the chemo we used - pill form - was surprisingly inexpensive. I don’t remember the cost, but it was cheaper than the chemo for our cat 
And VERY well tolerated.
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Not a dog but I had a cat last year that had the same presentation of tumor growing on the back of her pallet and down her throat. They debulked some of it when they took a biopsy, but she was already not eating well. I didn’t realize she had stopped eating much till we moved - thought it was the stress of the move. But really the tumor was making it hard for her to eat dry food.
She was diagnosed at the end of July and I let her go in September. The tumor was big enough that she would accidentally bite it and then get mad that it hurt and run away from her wet food.
I vowed to never let her get to the point where it compromised her breathing and just set a date. I was glad I did it when I did as we looked at it on her final visit and it was invading her throat. It gave me peace of mind that it was the right choice. She got all the wet food she could eat and as much snuggles as she wanted leading up to her last day.
I’m so sorry for your dog.
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I have a good friend who used this on her dog who had mouth cancer. It gave him about an additional 4-5 months or so of quality life
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I’m so sorry to hear this…what a heartbreak. Snuggle him up and give him all the love he will tolerate.
Long story short, I took in a Pit was very shut down and was considered unadopatable - he was slated for euth. I had a good working relationship with the humane agent and qualifications to attempt to rehab him. When he met my moms jack/pug mix, she gave him purpose and he really blossomed. My mom essentially stole my dog, but everyone was happy and it was exactly what the sweet boy deserved.
Years later we found he had a spinal meningioma that was inoperable. He did not tolerate prednisone well so we started him on CHM - i have no doubts it bought us more time and gave him a better quality of life during his last few months with us.
Unfortunately we lost his girl (the jack/pug) in October of last year. He went downhill pretty quickly after that. I suggested HE, but my mom generally has a hard time making that call (understandable). One night he had a series of spinal strokes that left him paralyzed from the neck back. My darling step dad (who nearly divorced my mom over this dog because “pit bulls are dangerous”) took him for chicken nuggets and ice cream, and took him to his specialists to say goodbye. It was a really hard goodbye, but we were glad he didn’t suffer. He lived almost a full year after his diagnosis, and it was a really good year.
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Thank you all.
We just got home from the consult at the oncologist. She was very thorough.
They did a needle aspirate and an abdominal u/s, that was clean but they didn’t get enough aspirate to send out to pathology. So she wants to do a biopsy to identify it and find out what kind of cancer it is so she knows what drugs to use. Makes perfect sense to me. So she’s calling the specialist who referred us and I’m contacting my primary vet to see who can get us in and do it. He’s a Frenchie so tubing him and putting him under is a little complicated so that’s the issue.
But there are options and some hope, and the oncologist was very aware of financial considerations and so forth when we were talking about all the options. So while it’s not a good situation it’s not quite as dire as I was led to believe last week.
Thank you all so much for the information and I will definitely check out the ancient Chinese secret and the other suggestions .
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Sorry for your diagnosis.
Look into Keto Pet website and diet. They have a pretty good success rate with just diet change for different types of canine cancers. It could be a long shot but it may be helpful.
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Jingles! The C word is just so scary, because we all know how quickly it can turn so dire I hope you get the best possible news for what you’re working with!
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I had a 13 1/2 yo beagle that I was blindsided with the news he had cancer when I took him in for a dental. Since he was out, they biopsied it and it was fibrosarcoma. Nasty tumor covering about 3 inches of his upper palate.
I didn’t even attempt treatment. I was told chemo would not work and like you, radiation was cost prohibitive. I took him home and did start him on a herbal therapy (can’t remember the name now—20 yrs later) just to feel like I was doing something. Within 2 weeks, it was obvious that the cancer was aggressive and locally invasive into his nasal passages. If he got excited, he could breathe in through his nose but had to exhale through his mouth. I was working and I could not stand the thought of him suffocating or bleeding out if a blood vessel eroded when I wasn’t there. We had two good weeks and I said goodbye. It really sucked because I had just had to say goodbye to his sister from CHF a mere 10 weeks earlier. It is what we can do for them. Would I do anything different now…with this particular cancer. No.
I am sorry. Jingles for you and your pup.
Susan
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I’m so sorry
