Cancer Treatment
Thanks to advances in veterinary medicine, many pets can successfully battle cancer and go on to lead happy, healthy lives. West Suburban Veterinary Associates uses the latest cancer treatments when treating dogs and cats, and treatment doses are tailored to optimize effectiveness and minimize side effects.
Dogs get cancer more often than cats, and in most cases cancer is a disease of the aging pet. Cancer can be found in nearly all body systems but often occurs in the skin, lymph nodes, intestines and spleen. Fortunately many skin cancers can be treated and cured with surgery alone. However, in the case of other cancers, it may not be as straight forward.
In planning the treatment of a cancer patient, determining the extent of the disease and obtaining a tissue biopsy are essential. Once this information is in hand, the best treatments can be determined as well as prognostic guidelines.
Through advances in medicine and understanding the biology of cancer, some cancers can be treated in a more targeted way, meaning reduced side effects and better outcomes. The field of cancer medicine is growing very quickly and many types of cancers have improved outcomes with treatment as compared to say, ten years ago.
The doctors at WSVA are prepared to guide the journey of a pet with a cancer diagnosis. Although some cancer patients require a specialist’s care, many patients are treated by your veterinarian at WSVA. The staff at WSVA has a special interest in these cases and a depth of knowledge and experience to help you and your pet.
Stem Cell Therapy
For a number of years, WSVA has been a center for stem cell therapy, an emerging science with great promise. Stem cells are cells that are not differentiated yet and have the potential to become any type of tissue they are placed in.
Stem cells are present in high numbers in the fatty tissue of dogs and cats. Stem cell therapy involves harvesting fat from a patient, isolating the stem cells, then injecting those cell into the damaged tissue that needs repair. This procedure is all done in our hospital with a one day stay for your pet.
Our doctors and technicians are trained and certified. There are many applications for stem cell therapy, but the most common is treating patients with arthritis and degenerative joint disease. This process involves injecting stem cells directly into the arthritic joints. In one study, 150 dogs with arthritis were treated with stem cell therapy. The results at the end of a 90 day period showed improvement in more than 90 percent of the treated dogs.
Give us a call today 630-968-4212. We welcome the opportunity to discuss options of how we can help your pet.