We Are The Cure Blog | Canine Cancer Information

Depending on what statistics you read, there are anywhere from 25 to 45 million dogs owners in the US.  Many people have more than one dog which is why those same statistics say there are anywhere from 45 to 65 million dogs in the US.

Being part of a non profit organization that funds canine Cancer research, stats like that get me both excited and frustrated.  I wish I could cosmically speak into every one of these dog owners and tell them to send $10 per year to help fund canine Cancer research.  With 25 to 45 million dog owners that would be $250 to $450 million dollars toward canine Cancer research each year.

If we received funds like that we would have a cure for canine Cancer.  Now, before you say that it would be better used to fund human Cancer research, let me share a few things with you.

The most important is that in 2004, the National Institute of Health (NIH) an organization mainly dealing with research on diseases affecting humans spent $32 million to map the entire genome of the dog.  They actually used a Boxer because Boxers like some other breeds such as Goldens, Bernese Mountain Dogs, and Flat Coated Retrievers seem to be more affected by Cancer.  By more effected, 75% of dogs from these breeds will get Cancer as opposed to 1 out of every 4 dogs will get Cancer.  Either way, it is bad for all dogs.

So why did the NIH spend $32 million to map the genome of the dog?  Because they believe that the cures for Cancer in humans will come through Cancer research in dogs.  You see when researchers use rats and mice, normally they inject a tumor under the skin and then try to treat it but dogs actually get the Cancer just like humans.  This makes the research more productive.  Also since a dog’s life span is so much shorter, researchers can study the Cancer from start to finish.  Now I assure you that there are no researchers that are giving Cancer to dogs to study the progression.  They do not have to because there are enough dogs suffering with Cancer and owners that are willing to help.

Additionally, most research in Cancer for dogs will translate to Cancer research in humans.  For example if a certain gene was discovered to lead to a certain type of Cancer in a dog, this will give researchers a road map of sorts into where to look for the similar gene in humans.

The dog is one of the greatest gifts to us humans and to many people their dog is their only friend.  And now our dogs are going to come and help save our lives by fighting Cancer.

Here is another interesting insight into canine Cancer research versus human Cancer research. Normally, researchers dealing with human Cancer research in the early stages of their research are very reluctant to share their studies with other researchers.  Why?  Because there is very big money involved for those scientists who grab the brass ring first.  This means that there are many researchers working on the exact same thing in human research and often times they may be able to help each other if they were to only share their work.

I have found that in canine Cancer research that most researchers openly share with their peers.  It seems everyone openly works together for the common cause of finding cures for canine Cancer. This moves the research ahead at a much faster pace.

Let’s put this into perspective in another way.  Right now $500 million dollars is being spent annually on human Cancer research.  That is ½ a billion dollars.  Only about $5 to $10 million dollars is being spent on canine Cancer research.  One can only imagine if we had as much money as human Cancer researchers have to spend on canine Cancer research.  I can tell you with the way the researchers work together we would have a cure for Cancer in dogs.

Well, I believe that we can have that much money for research.  If every dog owner would give $10 to $20 a year this would give us the $500 million for canine Cancer research.  Now do you see why I would love to just cosmically whisper into every dog owners ear “Send $20 to canine Cancer research”.  It is why we made the NCCF’s mission statement “If we all work together, WE are the cure.”

I NCCF have been trying to reach every dog owner, but I can’t do it alone.  But maybe if everyone reading this blog were to tell everyone one they know with a dog to send money that would help.  Yes, we would like it if you sent it to the National Canine Cancer Foundation at www.wearethecure.org but we also believe in our motto “If we all work together, We Are The Cure.  So if you want to send it to another research organization then it is still part of the overall picture of working together for a cure.

By the way there are many ways to help your dog and help canine Cancer research besides sending money.  There are a lot of clinical trials that are looking for dogs to participate, so please check with your local Vet Oncologist.  Additionally, if you are going to lose your dog to cancer, you can ask your Vet to send the tumor to researchers.  Many researchers, especially those dealing with gene studies, can use the specimens.  And it is a way for your dog to continue the fight for a cure.  It’s what we did with Duncan and though we still feel the pain of his loss, we do know it’s not in vain; he lives on in research to fight the Cancer that consumed him at the age of 6.  If you contact us at the NCCF, we can give you the instructions on how to do this.

Tags: Cancer, Canine Cancer, Canine Cancer Research, Dogs

This entry was posted on Wednesday, September 3rd, 2008 at 5:58 pm and is filed under Cancer Research, Canine Cancer, Dogs. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.