LYMPHOMA

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Boxers and cancer are two words associated with each other much too frequently.  My man Zeus and Angie and Gary's Chance have both passed to Lymphoma.  The "typical" canine lymphoma patient is of middle age and presents with one or more lumps on his body.  Zeus however, did not have any lumps and the only indication that he wasn't ok was that he just didn't have the energy that he had always had.  Chance had a recurring one on his neck.  Your vet with determine that all the peripheral lymph nodes (those near the skin surface) are enlarged and firm.  The next step is a blood panel and urinalysis to more completely assess the health and one or more lymph nodes are aspirated or biopsied to confirm the diagnosis.  I'll tell you right now that I do not believe in aspirating a tumor on a Boxer and always have them removed and sent in for analysis. The average live expectancy for a dog with untreated lymphoma is abouat 2 months from the time of diagnosis.  Zeus had only 2 weeks, Chance 6 months.    Lymphoma is a rapidly growing malignancy that is able to go and grow anywhere where there is lymph node tissue and that is virtually every organ in the body.  Ther are five stage classifications for Lymphoma: Stage I:  Only one lymph node involved Stage II:  SEveral lymph nodes in the same general area all involved Stage III:  All peripheral lymph nodes are involved Stage IV:  All peripheral lymph nodes plus the spleen, liver and/or anterior mediastrinum in the chest involved Stage V:  bone marrow involvement, regardless of any other areas involved. Lymphoma is classified by the anatomic area affected.  By far the most common form in the dog is the "multicentric" form which accounts of 84% of canine lymphoma.  There are three other forms of lymphoma: 1.  Gastrointesinal form - affecting only the GI tract 2.  Mediastinal - Chest and 3.  Extranodal (skin, eye and other miscellanious areas) Deciding how to handle a diagnosis of lymphoma is completely a personal choice.  In all of my dogs that have had cancer I have chosen to make them as comfortable as possible and allow them to go when it is time.  Others, such as Angie and Gary, chose to aggressively treat with surgery, medications and chemotherapy.  I did not utilize a canine resource group when Mugs and Zeus were diagnosed but through the K9Kidney Diet list I learned that Yahoo group Canine Cancer is a wonderful resource for information and support.

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