At this years meeting of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association, there were a number of exciting presentations. As always, taking the holistic view towards common problems sheds new light on many treatments that we don't always think of when taking the conventional approach. There is no doubt that cancer is a feared disease, and one that is all too often diagnosed.
Many owners fear the treatment more than the disease itself.
As a result, many holistic veterinarians are called upon by the pet-owning public to offer something different than chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Dr. Greg Ogilvie, a renowned oncologist, presented data on incorporating nutrition to prevent and treat cancer. In my opinion, nutrition is often overlooked when treating most conditions. Because of the devastating metabolic consequences of neoplasia, we must always incorporate sound nutrition when treating the cancer patient. Studies demonstrate that both people and pets with inadequate nutrition cannot metabolize chemotherapy drugs adequately which predisposes to toxicity and poor therapeutic response.