mast cell tumor

Question
My 10 yr old shitzu has a mast cell tumor - my vet suggested surgery - but first a series of tests to see if it spread, can she within stand surgery - etc etc - Of course I have been googling since she told me that - and I see a lot of posts about owners going a Benadryl and Tagament (1/2 tab each) per day to shirnk it..
what are your thoughts on this?

thanks
nina

Answer
Hi Nina,
I know you must be very worried about your little dog. Mast cells do release histamine, which causes inflammation around the lump and can have secondary effects on the gut. The antihistamines can help with this but do not actually make the tumor itself smaller (it may seem smaller because there is less histamine causing inflammation around the lump).

The best treatment is removal, but there is a new medication out that is quite effective too. It is registered for mast cell tumors, particularly those that can't be operated on.

Some good information here on mast cell tumors: http://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?A=1600

Some information about Palladia: https://www.zoetisus.com/solutions/pages/frank/documents/palladia_clientinformationsheet.pdf

Hope that helps a little.

Eloise