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"Our motivation for studying
and sharing our proprietary claims data was to
underscore the prevalence of cancer among dogs and
cats," said Carol McConnell, DVM, manager of
veterinary education and services for VPI. "The
data demonstrates pets suffer from the same cancers
as humans. Veterinary medicine has advanced
tremendously the past ten years and pets are now
receiving the same sophisticated treatments for
these cancers that we do, such as chemotherapy,
surgical procedures and immunotherapy."
VPI claims data from the past four years reveals
that the most common cancers in dogs were
lymphosarcoma (a cancer affecting the lymph node
system), skin tumors and osteogenic sarcoma (bone
cancer). The data also suggests that cats similarly
suffer from lympohsarcoma and skin tumors, but
showed higher rates for partial mastectomies (breast
cancer) and small intestinal cancer. Overall, the
2004 cancer-related claims submitted to Veterinary
Pet Insurance represented 176 different canine
breeds and 30 feline breeds. These claims include
all age groups, from kittens and puppies to
geriatric pets.
"Cancer in pets can be found in every breed
at various ages," added McConnell. "It's
significantly less common in younger pets, but it's
not unheard of for a younger dog to develop a
malignancy."
McConnell emphasizes the importance of monitoring
your pet for clinical signs of cancer. "It's
imperative for pet owners to take their furry family
members to their veterinarian for bi-annual checkups
and to regularly check their pet for warning signs:
lumps and bumps; sores that don't heal; weight loss;
loss of appetite; and exercise
intolerance."
With one in every 3 family pets visiting a vet in
an average year, pet insurance has never been so
popular. Responsible pet owners are often very glad
of insuring their pet, given that 40 percent of all
vet fees are caused by ‘unforeseen’ illnesses or accidents,
with the average vet bill for care and attention needed following a road accident involving a cat or dog last year was
in the region of $1500 to $2000.
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