Radiation therapy for pets now available in Calgary
By Michelle Lang, Calgary Herald April 14, 2009 7:27 AM
CALGARY - Faced with a cancer diagnosis, Alberta pet owners willing to buy radiation therapy for their canine and feline friends have always had to travel out of province for treatment.
Now, a veterinary clinic will begin offering the therapy in Calgary to serve the growing market for dog and cat cancer care.
The Western Veterinary Specialist and Emergency Centre is opening a"multidisciplinary cancer unit," including radiation therapy capabilities, in a ceremony today.
"With this clinic, there is nothing we can't do in Alberta for our oncology patients," said Dr. Jennifer Stelfox, an Edmonton-area veterinarian who runs a charitable organization for pets with cancer and is not involved with the clinic. "No one has to be shipped out of the province."
Officials with the southwest clinic declined interviews in advance of today's announcement, but several experts said the facility will be the second in Western Canada to offer radiation therapy for cats and dogs with cancer.
Previously, pet owners had to travel to Saskatoon or Washington state if their animal's cancer required radiation therapy.
Chemotherapy and surgery for cancer in cats and dogs is available in Calgary.
Dr. Valerie MacDonald, an associate professor of medical oncology at the University of Saskatchewan's veterinary school, said a growing number of people have been buying cancer treatments for their pets as more therapies became widely available in the past decade.
"A lot of people want to treat their animals," said MacDonald. "Sometimes we can cure them of their tumour. Other times we can't, but we can extend their lives."
Cancer treatment for pets, however, can come with a steep price tag. The Arizona-based National Canine Cancer Foundation estimates the cost of radiation therapy can range from $2,000 to $6,000 US.
Calgarian Tammy Laframboise estimates she paid about $13,000 for three rounds of chemotherapy in an attempt to save her golden retriever Remington, who had lymphoma.
Laframboise said she made the right decision, noting the treatments prolonged his life before he died last June.
"If there was something we could do to help him, we wanted to do that for him," she said.
"We didn't feel we could give up on him."
A statement from the West-ern Veterinary Specialist and Emergency Centre said its new clinic will offer state-of-the-art therapy that targets radiation at cancerous cells while sparing normal tissue.
mlang@theherald.canwest.com
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