I have a Labrador who is 11 in March. I noticed a growth on her front leg which the vet wants to remove as it sounds like cancer. One of my previous dogs died three years ago from a previous type of cancer, six months after she was diagnosed and treated.

I have to admit Lottie is my favourite and I do not begrudge paying to have the growth removed if it will extend her life and keep her healthy. Having Googled it, it appears dogs are only expected to live 6-12 months following a successful procedure.

Part of me is thinking just to let out the rest of her days in peace as she does not appear to be in pain, enjoys her walks, eats well and keeps the others in order. If/when I feel she is pain I would take the action needed.

The vets only seem willing to remove the growth but I'm sure my other dog had blood tests and biopsies. Has anyone any experiences of bone cancer, know how long survival is likely to be and if her life will deteriorate?

My Lab had a growth removed from her leg which was cancerous but it had not spread to the bone.  she recovered well and lived another 18 months till she was almost 13.  However my Maremma had been limping for a while and two lots of anti infammatory tablets had not solved it so the vet suggested x rays.  The x rays showed that he had bone cancer and I was advised that the bone could snap at any time so it was decided that the best thing was for him to be let go whilst still under anaesthetic.  Personally having seen both types of cancer involving legs, I would ask for an x ray to determine whether the bone itself is affected.    I hope that things are not as bad as you think and you get a little longer with your dog.

My flat coat had a malignant growth on her thigh. Various investigation was done and then  was treated successfully with radiotherapy but thank goodness didn't affect the bone.  She lived a good few years after that .
Maybe another chat with the vet to identify what type of tumour u are dealing with and how.the bone is affected if it is to help you decide how to proceed would be useful.we had Josie referred to a specialist to investigate and subsequently treat if that was appropriate

Sadly you can't cure bone cancer. There is a lot of information out there relating to Rottweilers. Its aggressive and no amount of chemo or amputation will stop it im afraid. Specialists who know their stuff will tell you this and you really are on borrowed time im afraid.. so sorry

Is it that easy to diagnose bone cancer without biopsy etc ? I know otherwise nine we had to do tests to identify what we were dealing with

Xrays usually show it very easily.

Sorry I wasn't aware ops dog had x-rays .sadly if it's definite diagnosis I agree :(

A close friend of mine had her 12 year old bitch diagnosed with bone cancer. The leg was removed and all looked clear and she made an amazing recovery. Sadly however just a few months later it was found the cancer had spread.

The crux of the matter is whether the cancer has already spread.  Lungs.   Yes tumours can be removed, as can legs if it's gone to the bone.  Having watched Noel Fitz doing how-many of these surgeries, in most cases all the owners get is a further short period of time with their dogs, if already elderly - and of course, whether to go ahead with surgery would, for me, depend on the age of the dog at the time.   I'd go ahead with a youngster, but probably not with one of over 10 really.   Thankfully, although we've had our fair share of various cancers at the end of our hounds' lives, we haven't had bone cancer (yet!).

I guess only you can make this decision (to do any surgery) but as always it has to be quality of life.  How often have I watched Noel do these surgeries and thought, I really don't think I'd put an already elderly dog through that for only another 6 months max of life even if of course we always want to do all there is to be done, for our precious dogs.

That's all you are getting an extra few months by amputating. All the people i know who went ahead with it the cancer had already spread so they got an extra 6 months but in that the dog was operated on, had to heal and get through walking on 3 legs. Its not fair oj thw dog to do that imo. Harsh as it sounds, just enjoy the time you have left providing the bone isnt about to shatter as that really is an immediate pts.

Malcolm - so sorry you have this awful decision to make.

As some on here may remember, one of our Flatcoats was diagnosed with bone cancer in a hind leg at the age of 13 months.  As he was so young we felt we had to give him a chance and after thorough consultations and careful consideration he had the leg amputated.

He did really well after this and was happy and active for five months.  He did not care a bit about having only three legs and still ran like the wind.

But sadly it became apparent the cancer had spread.  We don't know exactly where to, and we didn't want to subject him to any more investigations, but we suspected it had gone to one of the major organs.

He was put to sleep when he was exactly 18 months old.  Devastating.

Bone cancer is notorious for being very aggressive and unfortunately by the time it is diagnosed it is often too late to prevent spread.

I wish you strength in doing the right thing for your girl.

Bone cancer can be very aggressive.  But sometimes it may not be.  If you haven't had a biopsy done, it might be worth speaking to the vet about this - as they could stage the cancer, see how rapidly the cells are dividing etc, and give you more information to make the decision on. 

I doubt whether just removing the lump alone would be enough though, most cancer in limbs sees the whole limb being removed.  It might be worth thinking about whether you'd be prepared to do that.

I see no mention of a definite diagnosis (unless on a previous thread), but a suspicion, so an x-ray would seem the thing to do to see if bone is involved.

One of mine had a lump on her paw at 9 (consider that barely middle age in my breed) which was a Plasmacytoma, it was removed for biopsy, and then she had a second procedure to get clear margins which was curative.

If it is definitely osteosarcoma, then realistically the only slim chance the dog has IF it has not already appeared to spread (x-ray of lungs for that as it's the first place it appears) is amputation of the affected limb, and that still brings only a small chance as often, it simply isn't showing up in the lungs when the x-ray is taken but has still already started to spread.  It is extremely aggressive, and extremely painful.

I hope to never have to deal with it again (lost my first dog to it suddenly) but if I do, I will most likely go for hefty pain relief for a short time only.

If it is another kind of cancer though, the prognosis may be very different indeed so a definitive diagnosis is so important here, as soon as possible.

>I noticed a growth on her front leg which the vet wants to remove as it sounds like cancer.

It's not clear if it's the lump your vet wants to remove (presumably to send off for diagnosis) or the whole leg (which seems drastic if there isn't a confirmed diagnosis of cancer). I'm assuming the leg's been x-rayed, because osteosarcoma is quite simple to see.

It's the lump the vet wants to remove not the leg. No xrays have been taken. I am speaking to the head vet at the practice to see if any tests can be done before I decide about surgery.

She is eating and acting normally, and does not appear to be in pain. In fact she was running around chasing my younger dogs this morning. I don't really want to put her through an operation unless it is necessary and will give her a longer and good quality life

X-rays and (if possible) a biopsy should give you full information to make a decision. 

If you decide not to treat, look into the ketogenic diet for her.  Check out the KetoPet Sanctuary for more info:  http://www.ketopetsanctuary.com

I went through this and I’d decided if it was bone cancer to not wake him up. The lump turned out to be an arthritic flare up and my dog lived a good few years afterwards.