We Are The Cure Blog | Canine Cancer Information

Laundry products: non-natural detergent, fabric softener, dryer sheets… a little bit of internet research will convince you- there is all kinds of well-documented material about how very harmful the most common, best-selling brands are to our health. Keep in mind, between clothing, bedding, and towels, we are constantly exposed to and absorbing these poisons through our skin and so are our pets! If you launder any of their cloth toys, they are also ingesting those chemicals.

Here is a list of just some of the chemicals found in fabric softeners and dryer sheets: Reprinted with Permission from the SixWise.com Security & Wellness e-Newsletter

* Benzyl acetate: Linked to pancreatic cancer
* Benzyl Alcohol: Upper respiratory tract irritant
* Ethanol: On the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Hazardous Waste list and can cause central nervous system disorders
* A-Terpineol: Can cause respiratory problems, including fatal edema, and central nervous system damage
* Ethyl Acetate: A narcotic on the EPA’s Hazardous Waste list
* Camphor: Causes central nervous system disorders
* Chloroform: Neurotoxic, anesthetic and carcinogenic
* Linalool: A narcotic that causes central nervous system disorders
* Pentane: A chemical known to be harmful if inhaled

There are many natural, affordable alternatives to be found at stores like Whole Foods, Trader Joe’s, and many online companies. Just because it smells pretty, doesn’t mean it’s not harmful. Please don’t assume that large companies put your health and well-being before their bottom line.

In my opinion, it is always wise to read the label of every product your animal is exposed to in and around your home.

This blog is contributed by Nadine M. Rosin, author of The Healing Art of Pet Parenthood http://www.TheHealingArtOfPetParenthood.com

One word is wrong in the title of this post.

Can you find it?

It is the word “should”.

There is no “should”.

There is no “right” way to feel.

There is no “right” way to act.

What is, is.

What you feel, is what you feel.

There is no more than that.

There is no judgment to your reaction.

If you cry, yell, are silent, laugh, focus on your work, get mad, turn towards friends, turn away, that is just the nature of what is. We all react differently and there is no “one” way. Just let it all be.

Be who you are. Be how you are. Do not allow it to mean anything about yourself. No judgment that you are good, that you are bad, you should feel this, you shouldn’t feel that.

Contributed by Alex in Welderland at www.custompeturns.com Twitter is @CustomPetUrns

After reading the great blog by our guest blogger Alex of Welderland, I started to think about when we had to put our three dogs down because of Cancer.  I don’t have to tell anyone reading this how hard that decision is, especially right at the time of doing it.

But my wife and I have discovered something that happens with our dogs.  Each dog in their own way, let us know when it was time.  I can still remember when we made the decision for Bailey.  He was the hard one because even with only days left, he was still strong but he could hardly breathe because the Hermangiosarcoma had spread throughout his lungs.

When Bailey let us know it was time, it was at night.  We brush our dogs every night before going to bed and Bailey loved that.  He was up on the grooming table and struggled to breathe but was wagging his tail because he loved to be on the table and brushed.  Then there was a moment when he looked at us in a way that said he was ready, Sara and I both knew without saying anything to each other that it was time, and we just hugged him what seems forever and cried.  The next morning we said good bye to him.

Each of our dogs that have died of Cancer have told us when it is time by a look or an action that in our case makes us know we did the right thing.  But doing the right thing still is not easy and I still sometimes have doubts.  That is why I think Alexandria’s blog was so powerful.

Lymphoma in dogs is one of the most common cancers. While between 80 and 90% of dogs will achieve a complete remission, with conventional chemotherapy protocols the median time to loss of first remission is between 8 and 10 months with median overall survivals ranging between 12 and 14 months. Only about 5% of dogs will be alive at two years. The last major breakthrough for the treatment of canine lymphoma was the addition of doxorubicin to combination chemotherapy protocols around 30 years ago. New therapies to break through this ceiling are desperately needed.

We have recently begun enrolling dogs with relapsed lymphoma in a new clinical trial to evaluate a new type of chemotherapy treatment. We are evaluating response and toxicity. Working closely with the human medical school we have developed a nanoparticle targeting agent. This molecule targets dog lymphoma cells and brings conventional chemotherapy agents to the cancer cells. This has the potential of making therapy for lymphoma both more effective and less toxic.

This work is funded by a grant from the National Canine Cancer Foundation. At the conclusion of the trial we will make more information on this exciting new treatment available on the website

From Wikipedia: “Well into the 20th century, coal miners brought canaries into coal mines as an “early warning signal” for deadly, toxic gases. The birds, being more sensitive, would become sick before the miners, who would then have a chance to escape or put on protective respirators.”

Is it any wonder that with the “pre green” proliferation of chemical laden cleaning and laundry products, building supplies, and monthly flea poison treatments, that our pets are developing cancer at such an alarming rate? In addition to protecting one’s animal from constant exposure to a myriad of possible household carcinogens, our having to negotiate the constant recalls and dangers of an unregulated, processed pet food industry can be an overwhelming and depressing nightmare. But there’s also a deeper issue: when it comes to these everyday toxins that we have become so unconscious about or accepting of, have our cherished, innocent pets become our modern day canaries?

There are MANY things we can do to prevent our beloved companion animals from ever getting cancer. When my 8-year old dog, aka: my adopted daughter, Buttons, was diagnosed with deadly carcinoma and given 6 weeks to live, I launched a massive personal research campaign into the world of holistic medicine. I soon came to learn that “holistic” didn’t mean symptom treating with natural remedies or herbs in lieu of pharmaceutical drugs. Instead, it meant clearing my home environment of all possible toxins, cleansing Buttons’ entire system physically and emotionally, and then giving her the proper nutritional support so that Buttons’ body could do what an unburdened body does best: HEAL ITSELF. Buttons went on to thrive for another 11 years. Exactly 1 week before her 19th birthday, she died peacefully of old age in my loving arms.

Contributed by Nadine M. Rosin, author of The Healing Art of Pet Parenthood TheHealingArtOfPetParenthood.com

In 2004, the mapping of the dog genome was completed.  This effort was a collaboration of many individuals at many institutions and was funded by the National Institutes of Health. This was done at a cost of over $30 Million. Why did they do this?  Because they recognized that cures for cancer in people may come through studying and learning to treat this disease in dogs

There are several reasons that many cancer researchers believe this.  First, dogs like humans develop cancer spontaneously.  This is not the case in mice and rats in which the majority of cancer research happens now. Treating a mouse with a tumor that was injected into it is a lot easier to cure than a person with cancer. By learning how to treat a dog’s cancer, which has all the complexities of a human cancer, we are likely to come up with treatments that can also be used on people. Also, since dogs age faster than humans and they develop cancer at a younger age than people, cancer trials can be done faster and less expensively in dogs.

While the dog genome is about the same size as the human genome, there is less diversity in it, coming from many generations of breeding for specific traits and breeds.  This makes it easier to find the genes responsible for specific diseases, including many forms of cancer.

So in helping fund canine Cancer research you are also helping fight Cancer in people. For more information on the mapping of the genome of the dog go to http://www.genome.gov/12511476

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. (more…)

It doesn’t matter if you lost a beloved pet from Cancer even if they were 12 or 15 years old. It hurts. They are still part of your family and you will miss them every day. But about a week ago I got a donation from a group of employees in memory of another employee who just lost their dog, Chatham to Cancer. Chatham was only 18 months old. And again although losing any aged dog is terrible, seeing Cancer take a dog that is still considered a puppy just breaks my heart.

Chatham 18 month old Labrador Retriever

When I look at the picture they sent of Chatham I see this happy pup full of energy and wanting to play. And, as a usual for a puppy, that is playing all day. Also when I see his picture I get angry. Angry that Cancer took his life. Then I get determined. Determined to find a cure.

I don’t even know what I can say to the owners of Chatham to ease their pain or stop the sorrow they feel when they enter the house and are not longer greeted by a bouncing, happy go lucky lab puppy.

I am sorry falls short in my opinion. I guess the most heartfelt would be “I am trying to make sure Chatham does not die in vain”