Long-term Treatment with Toceranib Phosphate in a Dog with Metastatic Primary Pulmonary Adenocarcinoma

Abstract

A nine-year-old female mixed-breed dog underwent a right caudal lung lobectomy for pulmonary adenocarcinoma, followed by treatment with low-dose cyclophosphamide metronomic chemotherapy. Three months after the resection, metastatic nodules were detected through thoracic radiography for which piroxicam was administered. However, the metastases in the lung continued to progress. Ten months after the resection, the metastatic lesions regressed following the additional administration of toceranib phosphate. Though the dosage and frequency of the administration of toceranib phosphate was adjusted due to side-effects, such as anorexia, vomiting, and sterile hemorrhagic cystitis, the patient survived for 33 months. This case suggests that toceranib phosphate can be effective in the treatment of pulmonary adenocarcinoma. In the future, a combination of cyproheptadine and famotidine could be administered to relieve some of the side effects associated with toceranib phosphate, such as anorexia and vomiting, which are considered to be serious problems with its long-term use.