As a Tucson at home dog euthanasia expert with 25 years of experience, I have assessed and treated many dogs who have hemangiosarcoma. I know what it is like if you are an owner with a dog who may have this condition. It can feel overwhelming to try and get your head around all of the important information. That is why in this blog I’m going to talk about canine hemangiosarcoma in a systematic manner, by giving you key information broken up into the following useful sections:
- What is hemangiosarcoma in dogs?
- Statistics regarding canine hemangiosarcoma
- Common signs and symptoms of hemangiosarcoma in dogs
- Treatment for hemangiosarcoma in dogs
- Prognosis for canine hemangiosarcoma
- Tips for managing hemangiosarcoma
- Factors to assess to decide if you need to euthanize
What is hemangiosarcoma?
A canine hemangiosarcoma (HSA) is a malignant tumor located in the spleen, liver, or heart in dogs. Malignant refers to the fact that the tumor can grow aggressively. This is to be contrasted with a benign tumor, which is a non-cancerous growth that typically stays localized in one area and is usually not life-threatening.
HSA in dogs causes a cancerous mass to grow inside the dog’s heart, spleen, or liver. While you know where the heart is in your pet, you should know that the spleen is an organ located in your dog’s abdomen. The liver is also located in your dog’s abdominal region. The most common area where we find hemangiosarcoma in dogs is in the spleen. The dog’s spleen controls the production and removal of blood cells. When your dog has HSA, this process is disrupted.
Specifically, HSA in dogs means that the malignant tumor (a cancerous mass) produces fragile blood vessels that tend to break open, often called a rupture by a veterinarian. This rupture causes the dog to have internal bleeding. This causes the dog’s abdominal or heart region to fill with blood. When blood fills the abdominal area it is called “hemoabdomen”, and when the blood fills the membrane surrounding the heart known as the pericardial sac, it is called “pericardial tapenade”.
Statistics regarding canine hemangiosarcoma
Hemangiosarcoma is one of the most aggressive cancers that a dog can have. For this reason, canine hemangiosarcoma is often fatal. More than 50% of the dogs that develop this disease will die within 4 to 6 months. Almost 90% of dogs with hemangiosarcoma will die within one year. Estimates indicate that approximately 50,000 dogs in the United States develop hemangiosarcoma each year.
Common signs and symptoms of canine hemangiosarcoma
Signs of hemangiosarcoma in dogs can be subtle. This is especially true at the beginning of this disease process. Thus, the signs can be difficult for the pet owner to detect. One reason for this is the symptoms can wax and wane, worsening and then improving. Because of this reality, by the time hemangiosarcoma is detected it is often an emergency situation for the veterinarian and pet owner.
The most common signs that are observed are the following:
- weakness
- inability to stand up
- falling over
- sudden collapse
- distention, or enlargement of the abdomen, caused by rupture of the splenic mass causing the abdomen to fill up with blood.
- pale gum color
- panting and difficulty breathing
- sudden death
Treatment of hemangiosarcoma in dogs
There are limited treatment options for hemangiosarcoma. The only treatment for liver and splenic hemangiosarcoma is surgery. This surgery is often followed by chemotherapy to extend the life of your dog. With cardiac hemangiosarcoma, surgery is not an option. But, chemotherapy is used to extend your dog’s life. Unfortunately, because this form of cancer is aggressive, it has usually already spread. Because of this, it has already spread to other regions of the body and the effectiveness of chemotherapy can be limited.
A treatment plan can be utilized using a combination of your regular veterinarian and a veterinary oncologist who can work together. This combination of veterinary professionals offers the best chance for your dog’s life to be optimally extended. Remember, veterinary science is constantly evolving, so do not think that my list of treatment options is complete. Always check with your veterinarian to discover any options I may not have discussed.
Prognosis for hemangiosarcoma
Without veterinary treatment, most dogs diagnosed with hemangiosarcoma will typically die within one to two months. However, some dogs can survive longer. For dogs with hemangiosarcoma of the spleen, treated with surgery only, the median length of survival time is 1 to 3 months. If you add chemotherapy to the veterinary treatment protocol, it is reported to increase the median survival time of 4 to 6 months. This makes the combination of surgery and chemotherapy the most effective treatment protocol. Unfortunately, cancer cells often develop a resistance to chemotherapy.
Every day, researchers are trying to increase and improve the survival rate for dogs with hemangiosarcoma. Survival rates for dogs with hemangiosarcoma of the liver or heart are lower.
Tips for managing canine hemangiosarcoma in dogs
There are many different ways you can make your dog with hemangiosarcoma more comfortable. These include the following:
- using a supplement such as yunnan baiyo. Yunnan baiyo is reported to be an alternative medication first discovered in Asia. This medication has been shown to sometimes decrease the bleeding associated with hemangiosarcoma. Please note you must talk with your veterinarian about the use of any medication.
- monitoring quality of life, you can use my quality of life checklist
- keeping your dog’s water and food bowls near them
- avoid having your dog engage in vigorous exercise
- monitor for signs of weakness
- monitor gum color twice daily
- monitor abdominal distention, and you can do this by using a measuring tape which you wrap around their abdomen. Keep track of any changes in the circumference of your dog’s abdominal region.
The decision to euthanize
As a compassionate home based end-of-life care veterinarian in Tucson, I want you to understand something: your dog can suddenly deteriorate rapidly when they have canine hemangiosarcoma. This is why you need to vigilantly monitor your dog’s health status. It is also critical for you to talk with your regular veterinarian about what criteria you all agree should be used to decide when humane euthanasia should be utilized. This way, you have an advanced plan if things become quite bad for your furry friend. Remember, you can use my pet quality of life checklist to make sure you make the most objective decision that respects your dogs need for a respectful ending.
Increasingly, pet owners who have dogs with this condition will use an at-home euthanasia veterinarian because they specialize in allowing you to maximize the comfort of your animal in their last moments through a home based service. Here is the in home euthanasia process that I use with my clients. When dogs do not have to go to the clinic, and they can remain at home, they are often much more comfortable. One reason is they can have bad memories of going to the clinic because procedures were done on them.
Feel free to click here to read my blog on 7 questions you can ask to find the best at home euthanasia veterinarian.