Hemangiosarcoma Treatment and Options: My Journey with Max and the Inspiration for Luwello

No Hemangiosarcoma Treatment or Options

For hemangiosarcoma, there is no treatment or options available. Its specific to canines, and I was mistaken in thinking the Vet's annual blood draw and checkups were enough. I'd been through countless appointments with my cancer stricken husband where they could pull any type of test they wanted and get us the info we needed just from a blood draw. I just assumed the same was happening for my dog. Especially since the cost of his bloodwork was astronomically higher.

I was wrong. Its not that the Vet was not checking the right things, or purposely misleading me. It was the lack of diagnostic testing, Veterinary burnout, patient assumptions based on lifestyle, and general instinct for dogs to hide pain that did. 

Max was 3 days from death when I brought him to the ER for breathing problems, and his bloodwork was "unremarkable". What does that even mean? It means of all the things we can currently test on a dog weren't enough to show there were tumors suffocating my boy's lungs, spleen, liver. They could feel his spleen had large tumors through his stomach, and his lung X-Rays were totally gray. Even then, they weren't positive that it was hemangiosarcoma.

Max had just had ACL surgery 6 months prior. He had to undergo imaging, tests, and survive a full surgery. Why wasn't it caught then? He had likely torn his ACL on one of our runs, or chasing a rabbit in the yard - all of which pointed to the youthful and healthy lifestyle we focused on.

Upon my reflection of this question - and my research since then - its not lost on me that I wanted to project an image of health to my Vet. We all do, wanting to be seen as excellent pet owners. Max was a lifelong runner, ate organic freeze-dried treats, Vet recommended food, and was love-able and sweet. I ran all of the recommended tests, ensured he was up to date on his meds, and even had a lump or two biopsied over time when noticed.

Why did this happen?

But it was still missed. Is it because our Vets can barely handle the volume they have now? Did she too want to see him as healthy? Did she know to feel his stomach for spleen tumors? Did they X-Ray his lungs for surgery? Did she see the signs and know there was nothing she could do so she didn't mention it? Did she have a hard day prior to seeing us and just didn't look because she knew I was a "good" dog owner?

Its hard to say. It may just have been one of those things, or that the technology to catch it isn't there yet hemangiosarcoma treament and provide options. Or she didn't feel his stomach on the right day. Or his body tried to heal the ACL and therefore redirected all cancer fighting energy to that, which allowed it to flourish.

What I do know, is that I don't blame myself, or the Vet. Because we're all doing our best. I wish I had more time with Max to see if there was any clinical trial I could have done. It was just too late. And the only thing I can do now is make some lemonade.

I couldn't save Max. But I can use the experience to ensure others know about the massive disparity between human and canine care. When I discovered the ER was an Ethos Veterinary clinic that was involved in running trials to find diagnostic and therapeutic options for hemangiosarcoma, I knew I could do something to help.

And that's when I decided to start this company. We are starting small - collars, harnesses and leashes - quality products, manufactured by the best company I used on Max for 10 years. The best dog leash and dog collar I could find on the market - in our own custom designs. And from there, I'd build products to help people live out their healthiest and best days with their dogs.

I'm excited for what this year is to bring. This isn't just another e-commerce company. I am building a Brand for Good. The products will always be quality, with innovation, daily pain point solutions, and Women-owned. The company will focus on renewable materials, USA-manufacturing, and education of canine owners. That's a promise. 

At the end of the day, if a few more dog owners know about the limitations of what our canine healthcare can offer, act earlier on a concern, ask more questions, register in a clinical trial, or support canine cancer research through our products, then Max and I have done our job.

I hope you find our products true to our promise and you feel good when you make a purchase from us. Because that's what Luwello is meant to do!