Mira is having a tumor (a viral papilloma) removed for the second time. These tumors usually grow in young dogs and usually occur on the face or mouth, but rarely can occur on the feet, in between the pads, as in Mira's case. In healthy dogs the tumors are self limiting and will regress in several months. Recurrence is a sign that there is an underlying autoimmune problem. In Mira's case the vet is not convinced of this as she has been otherwise healthy, shiny coat, etc. We are crossing our fingers and paws. Remember nothing is black and white there are always shades of grey.
They are surgically removing the tumor again but this time they are modifying the procedure with hopes to prevent another recurrence. She will be on a round of zithromax (an antibiotic) and possibly some antiviral cream (Aldara). If it comes back again we will try cryotherapy (freezing) or chemotherapy. There has been some evidence that surgical removal during the growth phase actually stimulates more growth and the study advised postponing surgery until the mass reached it maximum size or started to regress. I'm not sure if this thing can get bigger, but I can't wait any longer as it is impeding her walking. I also read that you can crush the tumor in small sections which stimulates cell death, but this would be very painful and not an option for a dog like Mira. There is also information on manufacturing a vaccine from a section of the tumor but it has lead to cancer in that area later on.
In the end, the chemotherapy was described to me as not a very good option, showing less then positive results. Cryotherapy is relatively obsolete in small animals and they play a guessing game with how long to freeze the area. Too long and the bone can die leading to permanent damage and future surgeries.
The best evidence is with the antibiotic zithromax which has potential to become mainstream therapy, even over surgery. I'm not sure how this works as the tumor is viral and antibiotics work on bacteria, but it was described to me that it was working by a different mechanism to kill the tumor other then antibacterial. It's cheap and non invasive so it can't hurt to try.
I hope that this information is helpful for others who are going through this.
Say good-bye to Mira's little friend
15 comments:
kaleb had lots of little papalomas as a youngster, on his tongue (which is why he has a chunk missing) as well in his mouth, and he did had a little one on his foot too - but i mean little, not like Mira's, but luckily in his case he outgrew them - though the one on the tongue had to be surgically removed.
I hope the treatment she is getting will get rid of it for good. poor girl. Looks like you are making the right decision, happy thoughts your way!!!
Wow I did not realize how big it was, happy thoughts for you and Mira!!
poor Mira! that thing has grown since I last saw it!! wow. good luck! where did you decide to have the surgery done?
Hang in there!
My friend's late and much-loved spoo Shadow was euthanized last month- almost 10 years after her second and third papillomas were removed- all from her toes. She was not quite 17 years old.
omg... thank you so much for posting this info. i am certain my dog has the same thing! :(
he is booked at the vet next week to have it checked but i found your blog while trying to google to figure out what this growth on his paw could be? it looks so much like what your mira had. here is a photo... i almost thought he was growing an extra toe?!
http://s190.photobucket.com/albums/z280/lisaquirin2/?action=view¤t=3-6.jpg
glad to hear you girl made it thru her surgery ok and hope that her foot stays healthy. i am so glad to have found your post but i must admit i am not looking forward to possibly going thru the same surgery with my boy bull terrier. thanks again for sharing... this is the only post on the internet i have come across with detailed pics and information on this type of tumor.
Hey Lisa! I'm so glad my post helped you. Your boy is very handsome by the way! I love bull terriers, actually my friend says Mira has the flat head of a bull terrier - who knows!? She's a mutt.
Anyway the mass in your boy looks quite smooth, but I know pictures can be decieving. These masses look like sea anenomes - very tenticle like. But the location makes me suspect that it could very well be. The only way to determine for sure is biopsy unfortunetly. However, from what I've read most of these go away on there own and you don't have to do the surgery. That was just not the case with Mira, and it was getting hard for her to walk. I highly recommend talking with your vet about the round of antibiotics I mentioned. In Canada it's called Zithromax (azithromycin), once daily for 10 days. It's cheap and non invasive and suppose to kill these masses. It's worth a try in my opinion, and they have had good results in trials with it.
The only other scarey thing, is that if it isn't a viral papilloma then it could be cancerous. Again the only way to know is biopsy. If you go the surgery route I recommend this, it wasn't that much more to add on the bill in the end and it is such a peace of mind.
Please keep me updated on your boy, and good luck!
good to know about the antibiotics! i am going to print out your post and bring it with me when we got to the vet next week. i really hope it turns out to not be cancerous. the growth is quite fibrous on the end so it does have a sea anenome texture to it. i found another post of a dog with a severe case of it... not good. http://aspcacommunity.ning.com/group/dogsville/forum/topics/658300:Topic:629640
i will let you know how our vet visit goes. again thanks for sharing the info... the internet is a beautiful thing! how did we ever live without it?? :)
OMG that poor dog! But that aldara cream they talked about was also given to me as an option. The immune stimulants are also a good idea. If you have a naturalpath vet or store near you it may be worth it to look into some natural immune stimulants.
it's confirmed. hambone has a viral papilloma on his paw. the vet is going to remove it because he has started limping so it is effecting his comfort. surgery is booked for wednesday. good news is that the vet doesn't think it is a health hazard... just uncomfortable. fingers crossed his surgery goes well. hope mira is all healed up and back to her normal self! thanks again for sharing your info... the vet was very impressed that i knew what it was LOL. :)
Thanks Lisa - Mira is doing great! Crossing our fingers that it doesn't grow back. She is on the zithromax - which is suppose to kill the virus, you may want to ask your vet about Hambone going on it as well after surgery. You definetly don't want to have to go through it more then once! Trust me!
kicking myself for not taking your advice about that specific antibiotic!!!! hambone healed up and seemed fine but now a month later it looks like it is coming back. :(
it's pretty small but we have an appointment at the vet to have it checked on friday. they may have to go in and remove it again? going to ask about that specific antibiotic this time... certainly don't want to keep going thru this! hope mira's is gone for good. thanks again for your help!
hi again. i was wondering if mira was able to get rid of the virus? my vet did not recommend the antibiotics you suggested but if they worked for mira i am going to ask them again to put my boy on them. his has come back and worse... he has about 4 of them on his paw now. :(
i appreciate your help.
Hey Lisa
my email is sand_vand@yahoo.ca
drop me a line and we can "chat" via email
thanks i have sent you an email. :)
i was able to cure my boys papilloma by soaking a cotton ball in apple cider vinegar and applying it to his paw for an hour a day for a week straight. the huge growth fell completely off his foot and his paw looks perfect again. it was a miracle to find such an easy solution! hope this helps others. :)
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