5 Cancers Dogs Can Sniff Out with Amazing Accuracy

A trained dog named Frankie is in the news for being able to sniff out thyroid cancer in urine samples. But Frankie is not alone — dogs have also been trained to use their extraordinary senses of smell to sniff out breast, lung, ovarian, prostate and other cancers. (Even untrained dogs have sniffed out their dog moms’ breast cancer and dog dad’s brain and skin cancers.)

During the training process, dogs are presented with urine or breath samples from patients with cancer, without cancer and with other diseases. A clicker is used when the dogs sniff cancer samples so they learn to target the odor of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) that are linked to cancer. The dogs are trained to signal the presence of VOCs by pawing, barking or sitting by the sample, and are rewarded when they do so.

Breast Cancer: 98 Percent Accuracy

In a 2003 study, trained dogs detected breast cancer in breath samples with 98 percent accuracy. The samples were collected by having volunteers blow into plastic tubes that were filled with polypropylene wool, which preserves the breath’s scent.

“The tubes actually collect molecules from inside the human body,” notes the InSitu Foundation, a non-profit organization in Malibu, Calif., that trains dogs to detect cancer. “The dogs are actually smelling the cells, gasses, vapors and many different volatile organic compounds.”

Even more amazing are the cases of untrained pet dogs who successfully sniffed out their dog moms’ breast cancer. There have been at least three reported cases over the past few years, all of them in the UK. In December 2014, Josie Conlan’s rescued Border Collie, Ted, began nuzzling a lump on her breast and crying, according to Gazette Live. The lump turned out to be cancerous. In April 2013 a Pug named Flo did the same thing for her dog mom, Marian Cooper. And in July 2012, the BBC reported that Penny, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, sniffed out Sharon Rawlinson’s breast cancer.

“A few anecdotal cases have suggested that dogs may sometimes be aware that their owner has cancer,” Martin Ledwick, with Cancer Research UK, told the BBC. “No reliable research has given a scientific explanation of how this could work.”

Lung Cancer: 71 Percent Accuracy

Trained dogs in a 2011 study, conducted by the Schillerhoehe Hospital in Germany, sniffed out lung cancer in breath samples with 71 percent accuracy, ScienceDaily reported. The samples were from lung cancer patients, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients and healthy volunteers.

“In the breath of patients with lung cancer, there are likely to be different chemicals to normal breath samples and the dogs’ keen sense of smell can detect this difference at an early stage of the disease,” Thorsten Walles, author of the study, said in a press release.

“This is a big step forward in the diagnosis of lung cancer, but we still need to precisely identify the compounds observed in the exhaled breath of patients. It is unfortunate that dogs cannot communicate the biochemistry of the scent of cancer!”

Ovarian Cancer: 90 Percent Accuracy

A German Shepherd named Tsunami detected ovarian cancer in tissue samples with 90 percent accuracy during a 2014 study by the University of Pennsylvania.

Tsunami and two other dogs were trained using tissue samples from both cancerous ovaries and ovaries with benign disease, according to Bloomberg Business. Researchers are hoping sniffer dogs can someday be replaced with sensors that can detect cancerous tissue 1/100,000th the thickness of a sheet of paper.

“We don’t ever anticipate our dogs walking through a clinic,” Dr. Cindy Otto, founder and executive director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Working Dog Center, told the New York Times. “But we do hope that they will help refine chemical and nanosensing techniques for cancer detection.”

Prostate Cancer: 98 Percent Accuracy

Two specially trained dogs in a 2014 study were able to detect prostate cancer in urine samples with 98 percent accuracy, Medical News Today reported.

“These data show analysis of volatile organic compounds in urine is a promising approach to cancer detection,” said Dr. Brian Stork, a urologist from Grand Haven, Mich., who conducted a presentation of the findings at the annual American Urological Association conference.

“The possibility of using dogs to identify cancer is something most would never have considered possible a decade or two ago. It’s an interesting concept that ‘man’s best friend’ could help save your life.”

Thyroid Cancer: 88 Percent Accuracy

In a recent study by the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS), Frankie, a scent-trained, rescued German Shepherd mix, was able to sniff out thyroid cancer in 30 of 34 urine samples with 88 percent accuracy. He was just slightly less accurate than a standard thyroid biopsy — an invasive procedure using a needle.

“Current diagnostic procedures for thyroid cancer often yield uncertain results, leading to recurrent medical procedures and a large number of thyroid surgeries performed unnecessarily,” Donald Bodenner, M.D., Ph.D., said in a press release. “Scent-trained canines could be used by physicians to detect the presence of thyroid cancer at an early stage and to avoid surgery when unwarranted.”

Photos via European Lung Foundation, Facebook, uamshealth.com

Good and Surprising News for Tampa Dog Rescued from Railroad Tracks

MARCH 11, 2015 UPDATE: Two 17-year-olds have been arrested and charged with felony aggravated animal cruelty in this case.

After Tampa police officers Nick Wilson and Sgt. R. Mills rescued a Pit Bull mix who’d been shot and tied to railroad tracks Wednesday, her prognosis was not too good.

Although she’d been shot twice in the neck and once in the right shoulder, the dog was expected to survive. But Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Service (TBVES) veterinarian Jamie Davidson, who named the dog Cabela, thought her shattered right front leg would need to be amputated.

The good news: Cabela’s leg has been saved.

“Cabela came through surgery with flying colors and four legs,” TBVES posted on its Facebook page Friday. “The surgeon decided to pin it instead of amputation. It will be 6 to 8 weeks before we know whether she will regain full use and motion.”

The rather surprising and sad news: Cabela’s owners saw media coverage of her rescue and contacted the Tampa police department. They said she either escaped or was stolen from their yard four months ago — and, after reuniting with their dog this week, they decided not to bring her home.

“After a long visit where they were able to touch and cuddle with Cabela, they have made the decision to relinquish ownership and allow Cabela to be placed for adoption once her police hold is lifted,” TBVES reported on its Facebook page Friday.

TBVES is covering the cost of Cabela’s veterinary care, but is accepting donations via its website.

“All donations above what is necessary to cover the cost of Cabela’s care will be used for other animals rescued by Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Service (last year over 500 injured, ill or orphaned dogs and cats were cared for at our hospital) or will help care for injured or ill pets whose owners are financially limited,” the website states.

The Tampa police department is still investigating this case and getting many leads, according to USA Today.

A $5,500 reward is being offered for information that leads to an arrest. The reward money was donated by the Humane Society of Tampa Bay and Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay. To contribute to the reward fund, click here.

Anyone with information is asked to call 813-231-6130 or 800-873-TIPS, text CSTB plus your tip to 274637 (CRIMES), or submit your tip via the Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay website.

“Meanwhile, Cabela is resting comfortably, on the road to a full recovery and preparing for her new life!” TBVES wrote on its Facebook page Friday.

Photos via Facebook

TSA Agents Discover Stowaway Chihuahua in Checked Suitcase

When a woman was packing her suitcase earlier this week, she didn’t notice that her 7-year-old Chihuahua had hopped inside it.

As U.S. security agents were inspecting checked baggage for an American Airlines flight from New York’s La Guardia Airport Tuesday, an alarm went off. They expected to uncover something like a gun, knife or perhaps a gas-filled chainsaw (it’s happened).

Instead, they found the Chihuahua, alive and well, and staring up at them.

“TSA worked with the airline to identify the owner, and the two were happily reunited,” reads the caption of a photo posted by the Transportation Security Administration on Instagram, with the appropriate hashtag #TSAGoodCatch.

When TSA contacted the Chihuahua’s dog mom, “she was just as surprised as the TSA officer who found it,” spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said in a statement today.

While pets are sometimes allowed in the cargo hold of airplanes, they need to be in airline-approved crates — not in hard-sided suitcases with no breathing holes.

As the TSA noted in the photo caption, “It’s always important to double check your bags before traveling, especially to make sure your Chihuahua hasn’t stowed away inside one of them.”

The Chihuahua’s dog mom called her husband, who came and got the little stowaway, and took him home.

Photo via Instagram

Dogs and Other Animals with Black Fur Live Longer, New Study Says

It’s a sad fact that dogs (and cats) with black fur are less likely to be adopted than those whose fur is lighter colored. There’s even a name for it: “Black Dog Syndrome.” The reasons vary from superstitions, to negative portrayals in the media, to poor lighting in animal shelters and photos.

But the results of a new study could help put an end to Black Dog Syndrome. It found that dogs and other animals with black fur live longer than lighter-colored ones.

The study, published in the Feb. 19 issue of the scientific journal PLOS Genetics, looked at “how the balance between natural selection and genetic drift shapes the evolution of appearance and form,” according to the author summary.

A team of researchers from the HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology in Huntsville, Ala., identified the genetic mutations that produce black fur (melanism) in three closely related South American wild cats.

“Our results demonstrate that some ‘black cats’ are black not by chance, but by selection for a mutation that provides increased fitness,” the study’s author summary states.

It’s still unknown exactly how black fur increases an animal’s life span.

“Factors such as foliage, humidity, temperature and/or infectious agents are all possibilities, and could affect camouflage, resistance to heat or thermoregulation, or resistance to infections,” Dr. Gregory Barsh, one of the researchers, told Discovery News.

In a previous study, Dr. Barsh said it was discovered that “black wolves may have increased fitness in some environments due to a melanism mutation in a different gene from the ones studied here.”

He said some dogs may also enjoy the benefits of darker fur, “although breeding by humans now influences the process.”

Photo credit: OakleyOriginals

Tampa Police Officers Stop Train and Rescue Dog Tied to Tracks

MARCH 11, 2015 UPDATE: Two 17-year-olds have been arrested and charged with felony aggravated animal cruelty in this case.

Talk about a couple of Supermen.

Just minutes before it would hit a Pit Bull mix that had been shot and tied to the railroad tracks, Nick Wilson and Sgt. R. Mills (in the photo above) of the Tampa, Fla., police department were able to stop a train and free the dog.

The officers found the dog last night as they were responding to multiple 911 calls about a shooting in the area. They rushed her to the Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Center.

Despite being shot twice in her neck and once in her right shoulder, the dog, who’s believed to be a year or two old, is expected to survive. Her front right leg will need to be amputated, however.

Dr. Jamie Davidson treated the dog and named her Cabela. She told CNN Cabela’s rehabilitation will take only a week.

“Dogs rebound quick,” Dr. Davidson said. “Really, after everything that this dog has gone through … she’s the sweetest. I mean she’s not angry with people. She’s not growling. She’s been really, really good.”

According to the Tampa Police Department’s Facebook page, Cabela — who’s also being called “R&R” — is scheduled for surgery later today.

Tampa Bay Veterinary Emergency Center is covering the cost of Cabela’s care, which is expected to be several thousand dollars. To make a donation, contact the hospital.

Dr. Davidson said that once Cabela is healthy, spayed and vaccinated, she will be ready to be adopted by a “good family.”

The Tampa police department is asking anyone with information about this case to call 813-231-6130 or 800-873-TIPS, or submit a tip via Crime Stoppers of Tampa Bay.

Photos via Facebook