07 Aug Radiation Oncology Can Now Follow Excisional Cancer Surgery Or Be a Primary Therapy
No one wants to ever hear the words, “your pet has a malignant oral cancer.” It exudes fear, anxiety, and helplessness. The following questions then become “what can we do?”, “How long does he or she have to live?”
Hope Through Veterinary Dentistry
Fortunately, those fears and anxieties can be mitigated at times as veterinary dentists are trained in our residency to perform oral cancer surgery. Dr. Briggs and I perform surgical oncology frequently, and the success of oral surgery is dependent on a few items, mostly being the size and location of the mass.
Why Early Detection is Crucial
Masses that are identified early in the process are the ones that we can achieve clean margins (successfully remove the tumor), so routine visualization of your pet’s mouth is essential. Therefore, we recommend you check your dog and cat’s mouth weekly, and if you see anything that looks suspicious, contact your family veterinarian immediately. They, in turn, can schedule an examination with the Veterinary Dental Specialist ™ team here at Your Pet Dentist.
Performing a Biopsy
If your family veterinarian is performing the biopsy, MAKE SURE THEY TAKE ADEQUATE PICTURES AND DENTAL RADIOGRAPHS OF THE MASS IN QUESTION. Also, make sure they submit the biopsy to a reputable lab that has a pathologist who has a high dental IQ.
When Radiation Oncology Is Needed
We now have Radiation Oncology capability at Nashville Veterinary Specialists (NVS). They have a Board-Certified Radiation Oncologist (Dr. Christian Stocks) who can see if your pet’s oral tumor needs further radiation therapy. With some cases, oral surgical intervention followed by radiation can place a pet in extended remission. For those masses that cannot be completely removed via surgery or are not good surgical candidates, palliative radiation can be performed to help extend the life (and quality of life) of your pet.
Why Good Dental Health Matters Before Radiation
One very, very important aspect of radiation oncology—your pet must have an otherwise healthy mouth (teeth and gums) before radiation can be initiated, as no surgical intervention (tooth extractions or other oral surgery) can be performed after radiation therapy. So if your pet is having a mass radiated, let’s make sure that no other oral issues are hidden under the hood. Otherwise, your pet will suffer needlessly.
Oral Cancer Treatment for Dogs & Cats in Nashville
Oral cancer can be attacked via the surgical front as well as possibly radiation therapy. If you have any questions related to this topic, please contact the Your Pet Dentist team.
Barden Greenfield, DVM, Dipl. AVDC
Board Certified Veterinary Dentist ™
Your Pet Dentist of Nashville
Images used under creative commons license – commercial use (8/6/2025). Photo by Priscilla Du Preez ???????? on Unsplash, Image by PDPics from Pixabay