Pet Radiation Oncology

Although cancer can occur in pets of any age, there is an increasing risk of most cancers with age. A diagnosis of cancer may come from a blood test, x-rays, or fine- needle aspirates of lesions. Once a pet has an official diagnosis, or is suspected of having cancer, a veterinary oncologist is the health professional best trained to further stage and recommend treatments for your pet’s disease.

Typically, cancers may be treated with combinations of surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and sometimes immunotherapy. Radiation therapy is the use of high energy particles to damage DNA in cancerous cells. Historically, radiation therapy was commonly used to treat cancers that were non-resectable by surgeons or for tumors that were incompletely removed at surgery. Although radiation continues to be utilized in this manner, the arrival of many new technologies to Veterinary Care and Specialty Group (VCSG) in Chattanooga Tennessee, allows us to use radiation therapy on cancers that were otherwise thought to be untreatable.

With the addition of a Varian Edge linear accelerator which includes six degrees of freedom treatment couch, rapid arc, and high-definition multi-leaf collimator, VCSG is able to deliver radiation treatments with extreme precision. This results in decreased normal tissue side effects and the ability to escalate the radiation dose to the tumor. We will be able to deliver radiation via photons or electrons, using both traditional (electron beam and clinical photon radiation plans) and cutting-edge radiation treatment plans (stereotactic radiation therapy (SRT), intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT), and volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT)). Additionally, we have the use of Strontium-90 plesiotherapy for the treatment of small superficial lesions on the nasal planum, tongue, and pinnae of the ear.

List of common cancers treated with radiation therapy:

• Bladder & Prostate
• Bone
• Brain
• Cardiac & Heart-Base
• Cutaneous/Subcutaneous (Bulky & Incompletely Excised)
• Lung
• MLO
• Nasal
• Pituitary
• Thyroid