I am so very, very sad.....my beloved golden, Erik who is 8 years old has just had a biopsy done on his nose and it has been confirmed as SCC. The growth is at the very front of the nostril and is slightly protruding out. The vet also did an xray, taken inside his mouth, whilst under anesthetic and this showed no other abnormalities either in the sinuses or in the palette, in fact the vet said 'good news'!! There was just this area in the front of the nostril where the growth is. He is currently on piroxicam and cytotec (my vet was not aware of this treatment, i have done all the research on the internet myself) which I had my vet prescribe, and N-Tense, Pau D'arco and Flaxseed oil.

The vet has agreed that although he could try and surgically remove the growth, he would also need to remove 2cm of clean tissue as well, which basically means that he would have to remove Eriks nose!! I cannt put him through that, and then the vet has said that it doesnt guarantee to completely get rid of the tumor. Although, this form of cancer is very agressive, it does tend to remain localized and rarely spreads, there is a 5 - 10% chance of this.

I have considered radiation or chemo, but the vet has discounted both, saying that the success rate for either is very very slim.

I have been reading about cryosurgery, where basically the tumor is frozen to remove it, this is far less invasive than regular surgery, so I am trying to locate a vet in my area that offers this form of treatment.

If i am unsucessful with this, then I will have the bulk of the tumor removed, when it starts to become a problem for Erik as far as his breathing is concerned, which so far it hasnt.

Erik is a very happy dog, who doesnt know that anything is wrong with him, he occasionally has a short lived sneezing bout, which causes the tumor to bleed ever so slightly, but nothing very much. Apart from that, there doesnt appear to be anything wrong with him. My husband is gutted and ends up crying every evening while stroking and playing with Erik. He is just the sweetest golden you could ever meet, with not a nasty thought in him, all he wants to do is bring you one of his collection of cuddly toys out of his toybox for you to play with him, he greets each of us when we come in, with a cuddly in his mouth, which he pushes at you and follows you about with. He is asleep at my feet as I write this, and he will soon follow me into the bedroom ,where he will sleep on the floor at the side of the bed. Neither, myself or my teenage children can imagine life without him, as he is a very companionable dog, who doesnt like his own company, or that of other dogs, he just wants to be with you all the time.

Therefore, I refuse to give up on him and I will fight and fight and do what ever it takes to get through this with him.

Please pray for us, every little good wish and good vibration helps, I just try to have positive feelings when I am around him, as I dont want him to pick up on my sadness, which I know he would do.

Erik sounds a gorgeous chap. Sending him and you all healing thoughts.

Lumps x

Thats so sad.. good luck with everything

My lab was 2 when she got a heamatoma (cant spell it) on her splene... the vets told us it was malignant so we thought she would be gone in a matter of months (what made it worse was she was 4 weeks pregnant)...
Biopsy came back and there was no evidence of malignant cell change... miricle

I hope you get some good news soon

Erik sound like a wonerdful companion, I'm so sorry to hear your sad news.
I'm sending lots of positive thoughts your way with much love.
Hope you find away forward together.

xx- Sophie - xx

so sorry to hear this i was talking to a Samoyed owner at a show & one of her dogs had this she was saying it seemed to be getting more common & was blaming councils for spraying chemicals to kill weeds, dogs sniff in these places(around posts etc), dont know how right she was but you never know

Fingers crossed poor Erik will be ok. Jo x

Sending you big cyberhugs and healing wishes - Erik sounds a fabulous boy, and you and your OH sound like the kind of owners every dog would wish for. Hope you are successful in your search for a vet who will perform cryosurgery.

Give Erik a big hug from me.

I am so very sorry to hear of your beloved Golden, Eric, with SCC on his nose. I am writing to find out more about the treatments you've taken and the drugs you are currently using. My dear, dear golden, Dylan age 12-1/2 also has SCC on his nose. Five months ago he had laser surgery to remove the small area, but it is back and much more invasive this time. The vets do not want to treat him surgically this time, and basically tell me that I should just appreciate the time he has left. Dylan, too, is a very happy boy, active, and doesn't realize anything is wrong. You've thrown me a life line with the things you have mentioned in your post. Please let me know more about Eric, and the treatments you are currently using. Are you seeing a conventional vet, an oncologist, or a more wholistic vet for treating Eric at this time?
Sue

Hi
love and hugs to you and your little one .... he sounds such a wonderful boy xx

hugs to erik, he sounds a fab boy and you sound fantastic for him, good luck with his treatment

__________________
Paula
Grifdegalles

My aunt believes in blowing three little circles over the head at bedtime, not sure of its actual origin but she believes it keeps you safe and looked after.

I blew over my brothers head when he had a massive brain hemorrhage even after an emergency operation the prognosis was very bleak. It worked for us.

I don't want to give you false hope but what harm will it do. I think for us it was the power of our own belief.

Good luck with the treatment.

Sue