Events

Title: Cancer in dogs: How and when is it detected and is there room for improvement? Description: Major veterinary medical organizations recognize the importance of early cancer detection in dogs. However, guidelines driven screening protocols for early cancer detection are lacking, and cancer is often detected at advanced stages. Diagnosis of canine cancer at earlier stages or substages, prior to the onset of clinical signs, has been proven to lead to better outcomes for many cancer types. This session will examine data from over 350 cancer diagnosed dogs to establish how the presenting complaint came to attention and led to a definitive diagnosis of cancer in these patients. Additionally, the session will review the typical age at which cancer is diagnosed in dogs from a cohort of over 3,000 cancer diagnosed patients. Using this data, an age to start cancer screening can be recommended, based on the breed or weight of an individual dog. The session will conclude with a discussion of how blood based liquid biopsy testing may offer a convenient, noninvasive screening tool to aid in the earlier identification of cancer in dogs.This program has been approved for 1 hour of continuing education credit in jurisdictions that recognize RACE approval (Tracking number 20-921743).