The Life Expectancy of Dogs With Bone Cancer

Bone cancer is a heartbreaking diagnosis. The nonprofit organization Bone Cancer Dogs says osteosarcoma--the most common form of the disease--is "aggressive and ruthless." There is no known cure, but fortunately there are treatment options to extend the dog's life and keep him comfortable and active for some time.

  1. Pain management

    • Bone cancer is extremely painful. Dr. Daniel A. Degner, a veterinary surgeon, says dogs should be treated with narcotic pain medications like Codeine or Tramadol. Without other treatment, though, the cancer and the pain soon become unmanageable and the dog will have to be euthanized.

    Amputation

    • If the cancer has not spread to other areas of the body, veterinarians usually recommend amputation of the cancerous limb. Dr. Degner says amputation is the best way to eliminate the dog's pain. Dogs generally recover in a couple of weeks and return to their normal activities within a month. Amputation extends the dog's quality of life, and less-aggressive cancers may be fully cured by amputation. However, dogs with aggressive osteosarcoma generally live less than a year before the cancer appears elsewhere.

    Chemotherapy

    • The dogs who survive the longest are those who have amputation followed by chemotherapy. This may fully ward off some cancers, but it only slows the more malignant forms of bone cancer. According to Dr. Degner, dogs can be expected to live about one year, although, "occasionally we have seen dogs live three to four years following treatment."