Tripawds Podcast Episode #133: Veterinary surgical oncologist Dr. Maureen Griffin from the Colorado State university Flint Animal Cancer Center shares her work as part of a collaborative oncology team advancing cancer care for dogs and cats.

With this in-depth conversation Dr. Griffin reveals how veterinary cancer treatment is becoming more precise, less invasive, and more informative for pet parents facing difficult decisions.

Dr. Griffin explains how minimally invasive surgery can reduce pain and recovery time, and how sentinel lymph node mapping helps identify early cancer spread that imaging alone may miss. We also discuss how these techniques can sometimes be performed during the same procedure as tumor removal, reducing the need for multiple surgeries.

Key Takeaways

• Minimally invasive cancer surgery can mean smaller incisions, less pain, and faster recovery for pets
• Sentinel lymph node mapping helps identify where cancer is most likely to spread first
• CT scans are valuable, but may not detect early lymph node metastasis
• Pet parents can and should ask about staging options and referral centers when navigating a diagnosis

Resources

CSU Flint Animal Cancer Care Center: csuanimalcancercenter.org

Tripawds Foundations Course: tripawds.circle.so/c/foundations

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