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Oncology |
Cancer Treatment Unit
The Cancer Treatment Unit was formed in
1998 to aid in the diagnosis, care, and treatment of veterinary patients
with cancer in Louisiana. The facility has 2 major service units—medical
oncology (chemotherapy) and radiation oncology. Each of these units is
designed to diagnose and treat veterinary cancer patients with the most
advanced and cutting edge technology available. The oncology service works
from a team approach—so a patient requiring chemotherapy and radiation
therapy has the benefit of being evaluated by specialists in each of these
fields, who then design a treatment protocol tailored to their individual
needs.
Medical Oncology
Medical oncologists deal with patients that have cancers requiring
chemotherapy. There are many different types of chemotherapy agents for
use in veterinary cancer patients. The protocol chose n will depend on the
cancer type, as well as how advanced the cancer is when evaluated by the CTU oncologists. Most veterinary patients tolerate chemotherapy much
better than their human counterparts, and advances in the control of
chemotherapy induced side effects has greatly decreased the incidence of
common toxicities like nausea and vomiting. Most owners of pets undergoing
chemotherapy for cancer will describe their pet’s quality of life as
excellent (normal) during therapy.
Radiation Oncology
Radiation oncologists use radiation to kill cancer cells locally. This
allows cancers that cannot be cured with surgery alone to be
treated
effectively. With the incorporation of radiation it is often possible to
perform a less aggressive surgery than would otherwise be necessary, while
still achieving a high chance of cure. The radiation oncology service of
the CTU uses a linear accelerator to deliver a high energy beam of
radiation to the tumor. The LSU CTU is one of the only veterinary school
in the country that uses a multileaf collimator to perform intensity
modulated radiation therapy (IMRT). This technology allows the radiation
beam to be tightly conformed to the tumor
 contour,
sparing normal tissues in the radiation area. This permits precise
delivery of a high dose of radiation to the tumor, while sparing critical
normal tissues.
Cancer Treatment Unit Personnel
Faculty
Andrew Daters, DVM
Residents
Staff
Tammy Moreau, Medical Oncology
Jenny Cassibry, Radiation Oncology
Shay Bordelon, Radiation Oncology
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