New Brain Cancer Treatment For Dogs Could Someday Help Humans

BLACKSBURG, Va. (CBS Local/CBS News) – Sen. John McCain died Saturday after a year-long battle with glioblastoma, the deadliest form of brain cancer. It is rare, with only about 20,000 cases in the U.S. each year. It’s the same type of aggressive cancer that claimed the life of his Senate colleague and friend Ted Kennedy in 2009. Glioblastoma can be very difficult to treat and a cure it is often not possible. Researchers are working on developing new treatment options and one regimen is currently being tested on dogs with a canine version of the cancer. Researchers at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech are enrolling dogs with glioblastoma into a clinical trial to test the experimental drug. Laura Kamienski’s dog Emily is one of the participants. Kamienski was devastated when Emily, a 10-year-old Portuguese water dog, was she was diagnosed earlier this year. “I sobbed. I sat in the middle of the exam room and sobbed,” she told CBS News. Treatment options are very limited for dogs, but the clinical trial at Virginia Tech gave her hope. “I said I’ll do anything,” she said. The drug is injected directly into the tumor, specifically attacking the cancer while leaving the healthy brain tissue undamaged. “We watch the entire treatment on MRI,” Dr. John Rossmeisl, professor neurology and neurosurgery at Virginia Tech, told CBS News. “So we can watch the drug cover the tumor. And ...
Source: WBZ-TV - Breaking News, Weather and Sports for Boston, Worcester and New Hampshire - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health News Brain Cancer Cancer Treatment Dogs John McCain Local TV talkers Source Type: news