Benny

By Tami Tanoue and Roger McKenzie

June 1, 2010

Benny's about 11 years old, a combo of many great breeds who looks like a short-legged black Lab. We adopted him from Denver 's MaxFund No-Kill Shelter in 2004. He was the first to join our family from Maxfund and he’s a trail-blazer. He was the one who persuaded “Mom” that it’s okay for a dog to sleep on the people bed! He’s welcomed in several “siblings” from the MaxFund; Moey the Poodle, Tippy the Chihuahua, and Angel the Pom, as well as a kitten named Mr. Knuckles we found on the street. Because we volunteer as a foster family, Benny’s also taken the lead in welcoming foster dogs and cats into our home for temporary stays. He’s a gregarious guy who enjoys making new friends of the human and canine variety. Felines? Well, they’re okay, too, except maybe for Mr. Knuckles!

In the fall of 2009, Benny began limping. Initially, our vet treated him with pain relievers and nutritional supplements hoping it was a muscle strain or the aches and pains of being a senior dog. When these therapies had no effect she x-rayed him and saw something suspicious in his left front leg. Subsequent x-rays at a regional specialty hospital confirmed osteosarcoma. The recommended treatment was amputation followed by chemotherapy.

We’d heard from some of our most trusted animal rescue friends that CSU was THE place to go for state-of-the art cancer care. We went to the Animal Cancer Center (ACC) website and read the inspiring success stories, Riley’s in particular gave us hope. We learned about available treatments and clinical trials and decided to take Benny to the ACC’s cancer experts. The wonderful vets there suggested we explore another treatment option - stereotactic radiosugery (SRS). Under the care of Dr. Stewart Ryan, Benny would receive 3 high dose radiation treatments to the bone tumor with the intent to kill off the tumor. He specializes in SRS treatment for bone cancer and is conducting research on this new treatment. We were delighted to learn that this treatment could allow Benny to keep his leg and get rid of the painful and deadly tumor.  

After further tests it was determined Benny was a good candidate for SRS and he received three SRS treatments on consecutive days. Benny's limp began improving almost immediately and went away entirely within a short period of time. Chemotherapy was also administered every three weeks over six months.

At every visit to CSU, Benny and his humans were always treated with the utmost professionalism, courtesy and kindness. Benny has enjoyed being there for each one of his treatments and exams, although he generally felt a bit puny for a day or two following chemo. We’re writing this letter in May 2010 and it's now been six months since the SRS. Today, Benny is pain-free and as happy, active, and energetic as he's ever been! The fur loss at the entry point of the SRS is being slowly replaced by a white patch of fur - his badge of courage, the CSU vets call it.

A limb treated with SRS can be susceptible to fracture. Therefore we need to contain his exuberance when he's in the backyard, and we try (not always successfully) to keep him from jumping on and off the bed! A few weeks ago, we had a scare. Benny suddenly began limping again. We suspected a fracture, and rushed him to our vet. She saw something growing on his bone, and gave us very dire news...she thought the cancer had returned with a vengeance. But when we took him back to CSU, Dr. Ryan gave us GREAT news - what was growing back was NEW bone in the area of the treatment site, not cancer! Dr. Ryan reassured us that it's extremely unlikely for osteosarcoma to return to a limb treated with SRS. (The limp went away quickly, and was probably caused by a leap off the bed or a lunge at Mr. Knuckles!)

We can say unequivocally that taking Benny to CSU for his osteosarcoma treatment was the best decision we have ever made. Although Benny would no doubt have done okay with the more traditional amputation plus chemo, the SRS allowed him to avoid the difficulties involved in losing a limb and adjusting to life on three legs. This treatment option gave him the same chances for a long and happy life after cancer.  

Benny owes his life to the wonderful work of Dr. Ryan and the veterinary team at CSU. Benny, his humans and his "sibling" dogs and cat will be eternally grateful to everyone who participated in saving his life.

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