FDA Approves Drug for Dogs' Cancer

June 4, 2009— -- Having raised and bred show dogs, Lisa Peterson knew there was something wrong with her 9-year-old Norwegian elkhound Basia when she put her up on the table to groom her -- and noticed something unusual in the dog's mammary chain.

"It was a lump that was getting bigger; it was suspicious," she said.

Peterson took Basia to her veterinarian, who scheduled exploratory surgery. But on the day of the operation, it was already too late. Basia had cancer, and the tumor was already too big to be operated on. And she had to be put down.

Peterson's experience is not unusual when it comes to a type of tumor known as canine cutaneous mast cell tumors, which account for roughly one-fifth of all skin tumors in dogs. And they often are deadly.

But now a new drug -- the first to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to treat cancer in dogs -- may soon change that outcome for some pet owners.

Palladia, manufactured by Pfizer Animal Health, has elicited optimism from veterinarians and pet owners alike.

"It is a real breakthrough for a cancer drug to be made specifically for animals," said Lawrence McGill, a veterinary pathologist at ARUP Laboratories in Salt Lake City, Utah.

"Hopefully, this is the start of many products coming forward so that we can help pets with cancer. I strongly suspect that veterinary medicine will continue to utilize human anti-cancer drugs where appropriate, but new drugs directed towards improving the health and welfare of dogs, cats and other pets will be greatly utilized and appreciated," he said.