My experience with TCC of the Urethra diagnosed in my cocker spaniel

[Molly (Cocker Spaniel)]

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Hi there Dog forum members,
I have joined this forum to see if anyone has any experience with Transitional Cell carcinoma of the Urethra in their dog which to my knowledge is rare and only happens in 2% of dogs. My Cocker spaniel is almost 12 and was recently diagnosed after 8 weeks of investigations. Finally a CT scan and cytology showed a final stage tumour in the urethra (minimal spread into the bladder and one lymph node). She was given only two options, pain meds and chemo. Surgery isn’t possible at this stage due to the location of the tumour.
We decided on the metronomic method administering daily low dose Chlorambucil in the hope of cutting the blood supply to the tumour. We have also continued to give her daily metacam and 2 x Gabapentin. This was a tough decision but we came to the conclusion that we should try to give her a better quality of life towards the end. Prognosis is up to 50% of dogs with this stage will reach 6 months. So far so good, we have seen a significant change in just 5 days and she has so much more energy. It’s worth the disruption to our lives in order to do the best for her and she is so much happier. Long may this continue, we will obviously revise as we go along. I just hope she doesn’t start to get any side effects because this will change everything.
If anyone has any experiences with this diagnosis or in particular the drug which is fairly new please respond, Molly would love to hear from you.

 

[JoanneF]

No experience but I didn't want to read and run. Having more energy sounds encouraging so if it continues to allow her to have a good quality of life in her remaining time, that has to be a positive.

 

[arealhuman]

Welcome to the forum, sorry your first post is in less than an ideal situation. I have no experience of this at all, but as @JoanneF said, I just didn't want to pass over your post. The result of the medication so far sounds encouraging, long may it last.

 

[leashedForLife]

.

no personal experience [my own nor via my clients'] of TCC, but it sounds as tho U are doing all U can. & also it seems she's responding - or at least, holding steady. . That's excellent!

Would U like this thread shifted from 'Intros' to 'Dog Health'? - it might get a bit more attention, there.
[I can ask a mod to move it, or U can - just click on 'Report', an empty box will pop up, & ask a moderator to please move it to the Dog Health sub-forum.]

as an aside, one factor known to predispose dogs to bladder-TCC is exposure to lawn chemicals, especially broadleaf herbicides ['Weed N Feed', etc], so using organic methods to fertilize, weed, & reduce lawn-pests, is much safer, for the dogs, & healthier for everyone. // In-home dogs exposed to treated lawns are exposed directly - they both inhale the stuff, & absorb it into the body thru their paws, & any other skin that touches the grass.
Neighboring or downwind dogs are exposed by inhalation, or when they walk on curbside plots of treated grass, or cross an unfenced treated front lawn.
Older flea-control pesticides have also been implicated in K9 bladder-TCC. // There's also a genetic susceptibility - certain breeds are more-prone to bladder-TCC - & female dogs are more-likely to get it than M dogs.

Management of transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder in dogs: a review. - PubMed - NCBI

QUOTE,
"Risk factors for TCC include exposure to older types of flea control products & lawn chemicals, obesity, female sex, and a very strong breed-associated risk. This knowledge is allowing pet owners to take steps to reduce the risk of TCC in their dog.
The diagnosis of TCC is made by histopathology of tissue biopsies obtained by cystoscopy, surgery, or catheter. Percutaneous aspirates and biopsies should be avoided, due to the risk of tumor seeding.
TCC is most commonly located in the trigone region of the bladder, precluding complete surgical resection. Medical treatment is the mainstay for TCC therapy in dogs.
Although TCC is not usually curable in dogs, multiple drugs have activity against it. Approximately 75% of dogs respond favorably to TCC treatment, & can enjoy several months to a year or more of good quality life.
Many promising new therapies for TCC are emerging, & with the close similarity between TCC in dogs and high grade invasive bladder cancer in humans, new treatment strategies found to be successful in canine studies are expected to help dogs, & to be subsequently translated to humans."

I'll also note that the reverse is true, too - any new human-Tx can very well mean new k9-Txs that help.

Urinary Bladder Cancer in Dogs, a Naturally Occurring Model for Cancer Biology and Drug Development | ILAR Journal | Oxford Academic

Transitional Cell Carcinoma - Mar Vista Animal Medical Center

Re prevention, feeding yellow-orange or green leafy vegetables to a dog at least 3X per week can reduce their risk of developing bladder-TCC, even in susceptible breeds.

I hope she continues to hold her own - please let us know how U both are coping?
- terry

.

 

[Molly (Cocker Spaniel)]

.

no personal experience [my own nor via my clients'] of TCC, but it sounds as tho U are doing all U can. & also it seems she's responding - or at least, holding steady. . That's excellent!

Would U like this thread shifted from 'Intros' to 'Dog Health'? - it might get a bit more attention, there.
[I can ask a mod to move it, or U can - just click on 'Report', an empty box will pop up, & ask a moderator to please move it to the Dog Health sub-forum.]

as an aside, one factor known to predispose dogs to bladder-TCC is exposure to lawn chemicals, especially broadleaf herbicides ['Weed N Feed', etc], so using organic methods to fertilize, weed, & reduce lawn-pests, is much safer, for the dogs, & healthier for everyone. // In-home dogs exposed to treated lawns are exposed directly - they both inhale the stuff, & absorb it into the body thru their paws, & any other skin that touches the grass.
Neighboring or downwind dogs are exposed by inhalation, or when they walk on curbside plots of treated grass, or cross an unfenced treated front lawn.
Older flea-control pesticides have also been implicated in K9 bladder-TCC. // There's also a genetic susceptibility - certain breeds are more-prone to bladder-TCC - & female dogs are more-likely to get it than M dogs.

Management of transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder in dogs: a review. - PubMed - NCBI

QUOTE,
"Risk factors for TCC include exposure to older types of flea control products & lawn chemicals, obesity, female sex, and a very strong breed-associated risk. This knowledge is allowing pet owners to take steps to reduce the risk of TCC in their dog.
The diagnosis of TCC is made by histopathology of tissue biopsies obtained by cystoscopy, surgery, or catheter. Percutaneous aspirates and biopsies should be avoided, due to the risk of tumor seeding.
TCC is most commonly located in the trigone region of the bladder, precluding complete surgical resection. Medical treatment is the mainstay for TCC therapy in dogs.
Although TCC is not usually curable in dogs, multiple drugs have activity against it. Approximately 75% of dogs respond favorably to TCC treatment, & can enjoy several months to a year or more of good quality life.
Many promising new therapies for TCC are emerging, & with the close similarity between TCC in dogs and high grade invasive bladder cancer in humans, new treatment strategies found to be successful in canine studies are expected to help dogs, & to be subsequently translated to humans."

I'll also note that the reverse is true, too - any new human-Tx can very well mean new k9-Txs that help.

Urinary Bladder Cancer in Dogs, a Naturally Occurring Model for Cancer Biology and Drug Development | ILAR Journal | Oxford Academic

Transitional Cell Carcinoma - Mar Vista Animal Medical Center

Re prevention, feeding yellow-orange or green leafy vegetables to a dog at least 3X per week can reduce their risk of developing bladder-TCC, even in susceptible breeds.

I hope she continues to hold her own - please let us know how U both are coping?
- terry

.

Thank you, yes I have seen this information on the internet. All dogs will have a risk to insecticide chemicals, its very hard to control this over their lifetimes especially if you live rurally and walk in fields and across footpaths. Molly has been brought up on leafy veg every day with her top quality food. Sadly this hasn’t helped her developing the cancer. She is doing well at the moment though.

 

[Molly (Cocker Spaniel)]

Thank you, yes I have seen this information on the internet. All dogs will have a risk to insecticide chemicals, its very hard to control this over their lifetimes especially if you live rurally and walk in fields and across footpaths. Molly has been brought up on leafy veg every day with her top quality food. Sadly this hasn’t helped her developing the cancer. She is doing well at the moment though.

I have requested for this post to be moved, many thanks. I’m just getting to grips with this.

 

[Violet Turner]

i'm sorry to here your dog has been diagnosed with TCC. In my old career I never saw this but i studied it and i know a brief bit of what it is, if you want anything to be answered just ask! - we are always here if you need to talk to anyone, anyone would be happy to comfort you.