Finally, a New Frontier in the Fight Against Hemangiosarcoma
You bring your older, large-breed dog in for their annual physical. They’ve slowed down a bit on walks, but overall, they seem healthy and all the lab work comes back normal—nothing unusual.
A week later, they collapse.
At the emergency veterinary hospital, the diagnosis is grim: acute internal bleeding caused by hemangiosarcoma, an aggressive cancer of the blood vessels. Despite urgent care, your beloved companion is gone within months.
This heartbreaking scenario is all too common. Hemangiosarcoma often strikes without warning, progressing silently until it causes a sudden crisis. Most dogs appear healthy until the disease is already advanced. By then, few treatment options remain—and survival time is typically measured in weeks, not years.
“This is a bad disease with few options,” said Dr. Rowan Milner, a veterinary oncologist at the University of Florida. “It often presents as an emergency, leaving owners in shock and searching for answers.”
Over the last 30 years, survival rates for dogs with hemangiosarcoma have seen little improvement. But now, researchers are exploring a new path forward: a therapeutic cancer vaccine.
Dr. Milner and his team have previously demonstrated success using a vaccine to treat canine melanoma and osteosarcoma, two other aggressive cancers. These vaccines target GD3, a molecule found on the surface of cancer cells that can stimulate the immune system to attack.
When researchers identified GD3 on hemangiosarcoma cells, they launched a new study to evaluate whether the same approach could help dogs with hemangiosarcoma.
In the current clinical trial, dogs receive standard-of-care treatment and are randomized into two groups: one receives the GD3-based vaccine, the other a placebo. Preliminary results from the first 17 dogs have been promising—so promising, in fact, that the study has been expanded to include more dogs.
“I think there is real cause for hope,” Dr. Milner shared. “This is the new frontier. It’s giving us an option we’ve never had before.”
The next phase of the trial will evaluate the vaccine alone, without additional cancer medications, to better understand its full potential. Dr. Milner remains committed to pushing the research forward:
“We’re not going to stop. We’re going to keep chasing it.”
For 30 years, the AKC Canine Health Foundation has invested in science that supports longer, healthier lives for dogs. This progress is only possible thanks to the generous support of donors who believe in the power of research.
Please join us in fueling the fight against hemangiosarcoma and support innovative cancer research for dogs by donating today.
Help us fuel the fight against hemangiosarcoma and other canine cancers by donating to support vital research that advances breakthroughs for our dogs.
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