Multiple treatments require a great deal of commitment from both the radiation oncologist and you, the owner. Pets receiving radiation therapy for tumor control rather than just palliation require several weeks of treatment, with the therapy being given three to five times per week. Boarding your pet with us during the week is one option that can lessen the frustrations of multiple appointments, work schedules, and rush hour traffic. This would still allow you quality time with your pet on the weekends. The use of anesthesia is vital to precisely target the treatment area, and your pet must be well-fasted before each anesthesia.
Normal tissues have certain tolerance levels to radiation.
Exposing them to more than these levels causes tissue damage and serious complications. If the course of radiation treatments is interrupted, the tumor cells will continue to divide, quickly regaining any loss in tumor size that had been gained through the initial radiation therapy. Therefore, it is critical that no treatments be missed unless absolutely unavoidable. If your pet requires multiple types of treatment, they must be well-coordinated to achieve the maximum effectiveness of each one. This would include chemotherapy appointments as well as surgery and radiation therapy.