Navigating Pet Chemotherapy: What You Need to Know
Chemotherapy for pets has been around for decades and it is a viable option to help extend and improve the quality of life of your beloved pet. This form of treatment helps battle cancer, but can be confusing and stressful for pet owners. Let’s look at what you need to know about pet chemotherapy so that you can make the best decision for your pet.
What is Pet Chemotherapy?
Pet chemotherapy, like human chemotherapy, involves using drugs or other treatments that kill cancer cells in order to shrink tumours or slow their growth. It is a safe and effective way to treat cancer in pets, as long as it is done correctly by an experienced veterinarian. It works by targeting only the abnormal cells while leaving healthy cells largely unaffected.
Our vets at Sydney Animal Hospitals are experienced in this form of cancer treatment.
The Benefits of Pet Chemotherapy
Pet chemotherapy can help extend your beloved pet’s life and, most importantly, improve their quality of life. In some cases it can even cure the cancer completely! Depending on the type of cancer your pet has, chemotherapy may be used alone or in combination with other therapies such as radiation therapy or surgery. It is important to stress that even though we use the same drugs as in humans, the doses we use in our pets are much lower. At Sydney Animal Hospitals our aim is to improve their quality of life and to help them live comfortably with the cancer, or in some cases cure it, rather than negatively impacting the time they have left with us.
Side Effects of Pet Chemotherapy
Although there are many benefits to pet chemotherapy, there can be some risks associated with it. Common side effects include nausea, vomiting, lack of appetite, fatigue and hair loss or thinning fur. Your Sydney Animals Hospitals vet will work with you to create a plan that minimises these side effects while still providing effective treatment for your pet’s condition. Additionally, depending on the drug used in the treatment regimen, there may be some associated long-term risks that should be discussed prior to starting chemotherapy for your pet. However, as mentioned above, the doses are much lower to humans and side effects are rarely encountered. The benefits often outweigh any potential risks.
Navigating through the options available when it comes to treating your pet’s cancer can be daunting and difficult. However, understanding more about what chemotherapy entails can help make this process easier on both you and your beloved animal companion. Chemotherapy in animals is safe and effective if done correctly by an experienced vet; it has been proven time and time again to extend life expectancy while minimising side effects so that pets have a better quality of life during their remaining days with us. If you have any questions or concerns about whether or not this form of treatment would benefit your furry family member, please talk to one of our knowledgeable vets at Sydney Animal Hospitals. We are here for you every step of the way. 
If you have any questions, please contact your local Sydney Animal Hospital below who do pet chemotherapy;
Newtown (02)9519 4111
69-73 Erskineville Road Erskineville
Kellyville (02)8883 0533
106 Windsor Rd Kellyville
Newport (02)9997 4609
1 Palm Rd Newport
Avalon (02)9918 0833
710 Barrenjoey Rd Avalon Beach
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