Your pet being diagnosed with cancer can be very devastating news. One will have many questions running through their minds on what such a diagnosis mean and what options are available for treating the disease.
One of the most common question someone would ask is what causes cancer in pets, this is a question without any accurate answer as cancer can be caused by a combination of both genetic and environmental agents, most of which the pet must have been exposed to long before the actual diagnosis. Some types of cancers occur more on given breeds of pets, proving the fact that some strains of this disease is genetically influenced. If that sounds like a problem to you, contribute at @bluebuffalo to help fight pet cancer.
Most cancers however, are as a result of mutations that occur in pets genes during its lifetime and are not carried from birth. Mutations can result from exposure to natural hormones, or other external agents like tobacco smoke, chemicals or even sunlight.
In veterinary oncology, it has been discovered that nutrition, viruses, hormones and a variety of carcinogens such as pesticides, smoke, UV light, asbestos, polluted places, incinerators, and radioactive waste and canned pet foods can in a way increase the risk of cancer in pets.
Studies have shown conflicting results when it comes to exposure of pesticides and cancer development in pets. An example in this case is lymphoma, a cancer of the white blood cells, there have been some studies tying it to exposure of pesticides while other refute the same. Still pet owners should minimize exposure of their pets to these chemicals.
It is important to note that at times, it is very hard to prove cause and effect when it comes to the disease cancer. There are several interactions taking place between genes and the environment that may lead to tumor development. It may never be an easy task to determine the exact cause of cancer in such a scenario.
Some of the common warnings one can watch for that can show that your pet is experiencing some serious health problems, if some of the below listed symptoms appear, the best thing to do is seek for a veterinarian as soon as possible, remember that successful treatment depend on how soon the cancer is discovered.
Though pet owners would try to understand the exact cause of cancer in their animal, it is more important to focus on how to move to the treatment phase so as to provide the best possible life quality for as long as the pet is still alive.
· Swelling that persists.
· Swollen glands.
· Unusual lumps on the body
· Sores that don’t heal
· Loss of appetite and bleeding or discharge from body openings.
There are three main cancer treatment methods namely; surgery, radiation and medication, the treatment method will be basically depending on the stage in which the cancer has reached, the vet may recommend one method over the other or at some instances, he may recommend all the method. It should be noted that after a given stage of cancer, treatment may not be an option.
Likewise there are those who believe in holistic methods of cancer treatment while other believe in traditional methods, at the same time there are those who advocate for a mixture of the two while others have no belief in either of the methods. The decision to use or not to use a specific method is personal.