James' Cancer Treatment

Hi, I'm Shannon and I'm fundraising for my dogs unexpected emergency cancer treatment. James (full name James Franco) is a Golden Retriever who turned 9 on November 4, 2022. He is my best friend. He is my family. He is everything to me. Anyone who has met him can attest he is the goodest bestest boy.

On the morning of September 19, 2022 I found a lump under his jaw on his neck, and the very next day he was having bloodwork done and an FNA (fine needle aspiration) done on his swollen lymph nodes. 2 days later I found out his bloodwork came back good but the aspiration sample showed cancer. Lymphoma. Canine lymphoma is incurable, but treatable. The odds are good my dog will go into remission with treatment and I could still have a few years with him. Without treatment, this very aggressive cancer would likely overtake him in a few short months.

The plan: we start a 25 week Chemo treatment later this week called the Madison-Wisconsin Protocol. Same protocol used on humans. The plan is the first 8 weeks chemo is 1x a week then it's every 2 weeks for the duration. Here is a link explaining the protocol: https://caninelymphoma.com/canine-lymphoma-chemotherapy-madison-wisconsin-protocol/

After we do the first treatment this week I'm going to share his treatment schedule on here and I will be giving updates after each vet visit/treatment.

So as of January 8, 2023 he has failed the CHOP treatment. His lymph nodes became swollen again after his 11th treatment. After some trial and error we are trying a protocol with Lomustine (CCNU/Gleostine) and Prednisonole. Problem is big pharma stopped producing generic Lomustine and for his 80mg needed every 3 weeks it will cost around $800. Then the additional bloodwork every 3 weeks required before drug can be administered. We cant seem to catch a break.

I really feel weird doing this fundraiser but I love him so much and want to do everything I can to get more time with him. Please know I will not let him suffer. If the treatment doesn't work I will be focusing on quality end of life palliative care. Thank you in advance from both of us.