Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Radiation treatment outcomes for dogs with oral melanoma
By Baja, Alexie J et al.·Published in Veterinary and comparative oncology·2022·Department of Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: A retrospective study of 101 dogs with oral melanoma treated with a weekly or biweekly 6 Gy × 6 radiotherapy protocol.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 101 dogs with oral melanoma (a type of mouth cancer) were treated with a specific radiation therapy protocol that involved six sessions of radiation. The study found that dogs with earlier stages of cancer (stages I and II) had better outcomes when treated with radiation before any visible signs of the tumor appeared, compared to those with more advanced stages (III and IV). Overall, the average time before the cancer progressed was about 171 days, and the average survival time was about 232 days. The frequency of radiation sessions (weekly versus biweekly) did not significantly affect survival rates.
People also search for: dog oral melanoma treatment · radiation therapy for dog cancer · dog mouth cancer survival rate
Abstract
One radiotherapy (RT) protocol used for canine oral melanoma (OM) gives 36 Gy total, in six weekly or biweekly fractions (6 Gy × 6). This retrospective study characterizes oncologic outcomes for a relatively large group of dogs treated with this protocol and determines whether radiation dose intensity (weekly vs. biweekly) affected either progression-free or overall survival (PFS and OS). Dogs were included if 6 Gy × 6 was used to treat grossly evident OM, or if RT was used postoperatively in the subclinical disease setting. Kaplan-Meier statistics and Cox regression modelling were used to determine the predictive or prognostic value of mitotic count, bony lysis, World Health Organization (WHO) stage (I, II, III, or IV), using systemic anti-cancer therapies, tumour burden at the time of RT (macroscopic vs. subclinical), radiation dose intensity (weekly vs. biweekly), and treatment planning type (manual vs. computerized). The median PFS and OS times for all dogs (n = 101) were 171 and 232 days, respectively. On univariate analysis PFS and OS were significantly longer (p = <.05) with subclinical tumour burden, WHO stages I or II, and weekly irradiation. On multivariable analysis, only tumour stage remained significant; therefore, cases were grouped by WHO stage (I/II vs. III/IV). With low WHO stage (I/II), PFS and OS were longer when irradiating subclinical disease (PFS: risk ratio = 0.449, p = .032; OS: risk ratio = 0.422, p = .022); this was not true for high WHO stage (III/IV). When accounting for other factors, radiation dose intensity had no measurable impact on survival in either staging group.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35338766/