COLUMBIA — Cancer research trials at the University of Missouri are helping create a new sense of hope for pet owners whose dogs have been diagnosed with cancer.
One of those dog owners is Mary Winter, whose dog Sadie developed swollen lymph nodes last fall and was later diagnosed with lymphoma.
Winter decided to take Sadie to the MU College of Veterinary Medicine, where she learned Sadie qualified to join a clinical trial for a new cancer treatment focusing on lymphoma.
“We didn’t know that much about it, but we learned that it had the potential to be beneficial not only for her, for pets, but also for humans,” Winter said. “And that was really important to us as well.”
Jeffrey Bryan, the section head of oncology at MU and the director of comparative oncology, radiobiology and epigenetics, has been working on developing this trial for two and a half years.
The trial uses chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cells to kill the cancer cells. These CAR T-cells are engineered killer cells that are designed to go after a specific molecule that is only present on tumor cells or tumor-like cells.
“There is a hope that by killing these cancer cells, these engineered cells will educate the patient’s own immune system to recognize and help to eliminate and continue to suppress the tumor as well,” Bryan said.
The current trial includes three dogs — two who have already completed the trial and one who is beginning soon. Sadie is one of the two dogs who have gone into complete remission after being treated with the CAR T-cells.
Bryan said this is an indication that these cells have more efficacy than any other cells that have ever been tried in dogs.
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