How to make welfare-centred treatment decisions for dogs with cancer, balancing life extension with quality of life.
Cancer treatment decisions for dogs require a welfare-centred framework that explicitly asks: what is the realistic quality of life during treatment, and does the likely extension of life justify that quality? This question has different answers for different cancers, treatment protocols, and individual dogs. Chemotherapy for lymphoma in dogs is often tolerated with minimal side effects and produces meaningful remission; surgery for an abdominal tumour may produce a cure; radiation for a nasal tumour may extend comfortable life significantly. The welfare analysis must be honest about both the potential benefits and the real costs of treatment, and must include the dog's quality of life during treatment as a central consideration, not an afterthought.