Jenny

Ok - Isabelle goes back to the oncologist on the 30th. Last time we were there she mentioned possibly putting her on this drug for the colon cancer. Has anyone had any experience with this drug? I know Dobes can have odd reactions to certain meds that normally work well in other breeds so I figured I'd ask. Thanks!

tjmom

I am not familiar with those drugs however I can tell you that both of my boys had issues with sulfur based drugs. Not sure if either of these fall into that category but I would advise against using anything for dobies that had sulfur.

Hope your girls appt goes well on the 30th. Let us know how it goes.

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Jenny

I thought it was sulfa-drugs but couldn't remember ~ thanks!

dragonman

Jenny: Piroxicam is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory agent which can provide analgesia (pain relief). It's other use in dogs is in transitional cell cancers (usually bladder). It's effectiveness in other canine cancers like osteosarcomas is currently being explored.

The biggest side effect risk is gastrointestinal bleeding (ie. gastritis and ulcers). Older canines in general are going to be more sensitive to the gastric irritation. This medication can also irritate the kidneys and liver. Is Isabelle vWD affected? If so, piroxicam would be contraindicated. There are currently studies underway looking at deracoxib in lieu of piroxicam as an anticancer agent in dogs. Deracoxib is a selective COX-2 inhibitor and has very little to any risk of gastric bleeding and/or ulceration.

I have not had good experience with using nonselective nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory agents like piroxicam in my older dogs. Every single one of them developed gastritis so you need to be careful. Let us know what the oncologist says. Good luck.

I wish you both well, Tracy.

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doberkim

except both piroxicam AND deracoxib are sulfa drugs and i would not use them in dobermans unless forced. every single NSAID has the risk of GI ulceration and affects on both the liver and kidney, which is why careful monitoring must be undertaken when they are used. i have used multiple NSAID's in elderly dogs and with diligence on both the owners and my part, we have safely kept them comfortable, sometimes long term.

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ps4570

I wonder... In humans, folks who say they are allergic to "sulfa" can generally take the sulfur containing NSAIDs because what they really mean is they are allergic to sulfonamides. (I'll bet Pfizer has a medical letter pertaining to this.) The NSAID contain a different moiety (thiazine?) which does not seem to be associated with hypersensitivity.

Is there anything in the literature pertaining to this in dogs? What chemical entity is really causing problems? Are we seeing toxicity from NSAIDs in Dobermans that is associated with sulfonamides?

I hope my questions/thought isn't too vague. Lena wants to go for a walk and Emily is hassling me to get off the computer. Kids!

Jenny

Thanks for the info - I really appreciate it. I will talk to the oncologist to see if there is a non-sulfa drug we can use for her. I just don't want to put her through any more surgeries. Plus the thought of operating on her colon scares me & it sound like a horrible proceure. She had a tough time recovering from her colonoscopy in March. She woke up fine from surgery, but the next few days were rough on her. Why do Dobes have such adverse reactions to sulfa drugs or is that an unknown? What are the reactions they can have?

tjmom

My first dobie broke out in hives when given a sulfa based drug and it was easily remedied with a shot of benadryl. My Titus had a severe reaction to it and it. He had a temp of over 103 and ended up in the ER vet. We suspect that he might had already had an underlying issue with his liver (we didnt know about it at the time) that the sulfa and the pheno did not help the situation. Unfortantley my boy was not able to fight off all of the issues against him.

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