I'm looking for any comments or experiences on treatments for this cancer. Last week my 8.5 year old female GSD was reluctant to get out of bed a couple of times. I put this down to ageing and I'd also got her a new comfy bed.

Last Friday morning I had to call her back from barking at the dogs opposite so she was ok then but she refused her tea. Her side felt slightly hard on one side but her temp, pulse and colour was good. It was out of character for her so I took her to the vets thinking it might be the start of bloat.

The vet felt a little gas but she did react to being prodded on one side so he xrayed. Nothing. Then scanned and found her spleen had a mass that was bleeding out so he operated and took it out. She sailed through the op and is pretty much normal.

Today he rang with biopsy results and it's a hemangiosarcoma with a bleak outlook. She can have 5 x 3 wkly treatments of a drug called Doxorubicin but obviously it's only to give her a bit more time not a cure. The 5 cycles would cost £2.5k. Not that it matters (she is insured) but my feeling is I wouldn't want her to suffer any side effects and feel worse. Obviously wouldn't know until she'd had a course.

Any input appreciated. We can't do anything until her stitches come out so I'm trying to be prepared.

Average post op life expectancy is 60-90 DAYS!
Post chemo as little as 6 months.
I chose to let my dog go upon diagnosis because I believed he felt awful and would be worse during chemo.

My brothers dog had both surgery and chemo and only had 3 months post diagnosis.

This aggressive tumour usually had its primary source in the aorta and spreads like wildfire throughout the vascular system. Only 10% of Post chemo/splenectomy dogs survive for more than 12 months.

So sorry your dog has this awful disease.

My boy had his spleen removed for the same reason as your girl.  No signs of spread at the time of the op but as this cancer spreads through the blood vessels I knew time was limited.  I decided not to go chemo, my boy would have hated to be taken from me each week and I understood through research that quite a few dogs can vomit, etc.  I didn't want my boys last months to be spent this way.  I chose to use a homeopathic vet who had excellent statistics.  Sadly, 5 weeks later I had to let him go but I was grateful for these weeks.  He spent them happy and very much "himself" until the last day or two.  I spent those weeks trawling through the net looking for evidence of miracles, and I found some.  It just wasn't to be for me and my boy.  Cherish every minute, tell her how much you love her but let her live the life she knows.  My boy was the same age as your girl.  I'm so sorry I can't give you a more optimistic story.  Feel free to pm me if you would like more details or to talk.

>Feel free to pm me if you would like more details or to talk. 

And it is offers of this kind that makes CD the best darn dog forum on the net. 

I am so sorry I lost my gsd to the same at 9. I can only repeat what has been said sadly, I chose to keep her comfortable for the few weeks we eventually had personally I would go down the homeopathic route but it is a very individual choice with a very aggressive cancer.
take care and hug him tight

I'm so sorry that you and your girl are going through this.

I have no direct experience of hemangiosarcoma, but I lost a youngster (diagnosed at 14 months) to osteosarcoma last year - another horrendously aggressive cancer ...

We gave him a chance via amputation, but decided against chemotherapy.  We said goodbye when he was exactly 18 months old.  Terrible as it was, I am sure we made the right decision.  He was happy right until the end and I think he may well not have been had we gone for chemo.  I also knew in my heart that the chemo would only extend his life for a short time, if at all.  As it was, his last weeks were happy ones.  His tail never stopped wagging.

I wish you strength in making your decision.
All good wishes and hugs to you both
Blay  X

Thank you all so much for the replies and Zajak for the offer to talk. It means a lot to me. From what I've read it's not a case of IF it spreads, it's WHEN. Apart from boosters she's only seen the vet 3 times, once for pyo at 11 months, once when she tore her eyelid on a bush going after a ball and now this.
I haven't come to a definite decision yet but am more inclined to do the no treatment route. Although my vet says dogs tolerate the Doxorubicin well I would hate her to be ill and have to be on other stuff because of it and the odds of longer life are very slim. I've got her on some alternate stuff which if it doesn't help can't do any harm.
I'm looking forward to next Friday when her stitches come out, the cone can come off and she can be chasing rabbits again and back to normal for her, albeit for however long that is.

This happened to my 'Heart' dog at only 5 years old, three years ago now but I doubt Ill ever get over it.

I'm so, so sad you and your dog are going through this.

One of my dogs had a small tumour removed from over his hip area 18 months ago. Due to complications with the site of the surgery he was not allowed to have any exercise at all for a long time and he was very subdued and miserable during that time. He is used to walking 4-5 miles a day and training and competing at agility. He got to the stage when he didn't even lift his head up when the other dogs were taken out for their walks - and he is always first in the queue for the lead to be put on.

Having seen just how down he was I have decided that if there are any future problems he will only receive palliative care and he will live his life as fully as possible until the time comes to say goodbye.

I am a huge believer in quality of life over quantity and am at peace with the decisions I have made.

Enjoy your time together and I know that whatever decisions you make you have your dog's best interests at heart.

I am so sorry. I lost my girl to this last year, and the x rays revealed that it had spread to the liver as well, [possibly even further as the growth were so large the organs were being pushed into the wrong places. The vet was concerned it would soon restrict her breathing, as the lungs were becoming slightly compressed by the other organs. Knowing that post op survival is very limited anyway, and hers had already spread, I chose to have her with me for a little while and then to let her go before we got to any kind of critical point.  It's a shocking disease because you get no warning that anything is amiss.

Even without the spread I don't think I would have gone for chemo. Knowing time was so precious I wouldn't want it spent with her feeling unwell. I hope you have some quality time together left....and I don't doubt that you will make every moment special.