Attacking Cancer Nutritionally in a Diabetic Dog

As part of my "shotgun" approach, I sifted through a bunch of material on diet and cancer in dogs.  It appears to be generally agreed that carbohydrates need to be reduced, especially carbs that are from grains and starches (one site says that the ratio should be 95% protein and fat, 5% carbs-- only non-starchy vegetables and fruits).  There also seems to be agreement that Omega 3 fatty acids must be increased, although Omega 6s are controversial, with some saying they feed the cancer (this is said about carbs, too) while others think that they should be at the same level the dog has always had.  Many vets and pet owners recommended yogurt as well (Tony already gets plain nonfat yogurt as his bedtime snack), and others raved (some ranted) about the benefits of a raw foods diet for dogs with cancer. 

Safflower Image via Wikipedia

Several sites talk about a study that was published in the journal Cancer Letter in 1992, where 75% of a small sample group of dogs went into remission of the skin form of lymphoma with only the addition of safflower oil (high in Omega 6s, especially linoleic acid) to their diet.  I particularly like the Pet Web Library website of the Mar Vista Animal Medical Center in Los Angeles  (http://www.marvistavet.com/index.html), as they have set up pages on most of the conditions their clients are likely to ask about.  The lymphoma page was very helpful when it came to nutrition.  They mention that the safflower oil study remains controversial (there is a later study that produced the same results, but again on a very small sample), and they also point out that the brand preferred for this is Hollywood, not Hain. 

Along with all of this new information, I realized that I already knew some things about supplementation and general nutrition for diabetics that I could apply to the problem.  After all, I live with two diabetic humans, and I have a chronic illness (Still's Disease) as well, and all three of us (one of whom is an R.N.) use nutritional supplements for our various health issues.  Thus armed with a bunch of ideas, I started formulating a basic diet plan, intending to revise it as I learn more and as Tony gives me feedback.

First, I ruled out going the raw food route whole-hog, so to speak, but I would not fry or bake any meat or fish, to avoid the Maillard effect.  This is basically browning, the thing that gives meat a lot of its flavor, but it has been implicated as a risk factor for cancer in many studies, so I decided to stick with boiling and steaming, which means that I can use some canned products.  I discovered on a trip to Woodman's, my very favorite supermarket of all time (even though the store is so enormous that I often have to lie down when I get home after a shopping trip), that there are a number of brands of canned salmon that are reasonably priced (certainly less than premium or prescription dog food) and would work well for my purposes.  I would not eat these brands myself (yes, I'm picky-- the salmon just isn't pretty enough for me; there's skin and those little round vertebrae that creep me out), but Tony loves them, and they have a number of benefits for him.  Additionally, I can boost their Omega 3 content with his 3V oil (from Foster and Smith), which he has been spurning lately, and add anything else I need him to eat, because the smell is so strong that it masks the stuff he doesn't like.  Hurray!

I've already mentioned in a previous posting that I have given him either asparagus (canned spears and tips) or broccoli (frozen) at various times; now he is getting both, twice a day, mixed in with the salmon.  To this I am adding a scant teaspoon of Hollywood  safflower oil, a tablespoon of chicken broth heavily seasoned with turmeric, and a sprinkling of cranberry meal (I'm using the capsules I take), plus a crushed multivitamin in the breakfast bowl.  He eats this eagerly.  

There are other supplements that he takes:  brewer's yeast, which he will take as a whole pill, and a milk thistle supplement (Marin is the brand name), which gets crushed up with his medications and is mixed into a teaspoonful of peanut butter (I'm past worrying about his kidney stones-- he needs the medicine to keep him alive now, and he has never refused peanut butter).  The milk thistle and cranberry meal are to support liver and kidney function respectively; this is important, because most dogs with lymphoma die of liver or kidney complications.  However, most of those dogs are being treated with chemotherapy (non-radiation), which Tony will not be.  As an older dog with diabetes, he is just not a good candidate for chemo.

I have also added another pair of supplements for what is called "immunomodulation."  I don't know if this will help, but I can't see how it would hurt.  The products are K9 Immunity and K9 Transfer Factor, and according to the makers, there is usually some improvement at the ten-day mark.  Of course, this is usually given in conjunction with chemotherapy. 

Tony has been on this diet since Wednesday, 10/7, and he started on the K9 supplements a day later.  Just today, 10/17, I noticed an actual improvement in his condition, which may have nothing to do with any of this, but it's the first positive change in weeks.  It has to do with his skin condition, which has been terrible.  He has had lesions popping up, first on his stomach and then all over.  His beautiful fluffy fur coat turned into a series of giant mats, and removing them was like shearing a very small sheep-- it came off in one solid layer.  Underneath that, his skin was almost covered in a white scaly substance that flaked off when you touched it.  Many of the flakes had sharp edges.  This morning, when I picked him up for his insulin shot, his stomach felt soft.  After the shot -- and the obligatory treat, I rolled him onto his back.  There were only a couple of small lesions left, and very little of the scaly stuff remained in that area.  He has only been on Prednisone for two days.  

So far, I think I'm doing the right things, but I know that I could easily be mistaken.  Dr. Kroll sees no problem with these changes as long as they don't affect his blood sugar adversely (they haven't yet).  We'll see how it goes.