Treatment Options for Cushing’s Disease in your Dog

Surgery is going to need to be looked at if your dog has a tumor in the adrenal glands. Removing it is the best course of action in order to help your dog get back to normal. In most cases these tumors will not regrow once they have been successfully removed. The prognosis for a full recovery is extremely high. Ketoconazole is often given before the surgery in order to help reduce the effects of the various symptoms associated with Cushing’s disease.

However, for many older dogs there is a risk when they are given Adrenalectomies and that can prevent an owner from giving consent. More than half of all adrenal tumors are malignant in nature. It is also very common for them to have already spread to the liver or lungs before they are found. As a result the owner may decide that they don’t wish to put their dog through the surgery.

When the tumors are found in the pituitary glands surgery isn’t conducted. They are extremely small and they won’t grow very fast at all. Since they don’t cause too much damage at all the risks of the surgery are more than the possible benefits to the pet. Instead the focus is to treat the symptoms and to leave the tumors in place. Sometimes radiation is used in an effort to reduce the size of these tumors.

As a result of the smaller size, any neurological problems that the dog was suffering from can be offset. If there was pressure on the brain from them, reducing the size can offset that and make them smaller. It can cost thousands of dollars though for such radiation treatments so not all owners are able to justify the cost of this type of treatment.

There are several types of drugs that can be used for successful treatment of Cushing’s disease. One of them is called Lysodren and it is the one that is used the most by veterinarians. It works by destroying the adrenal cortex tissue which produces the glucocorticoid hormones. When a dog is given Lysodren daily for a week then the level of Cortisol in the blood should be at a normal level. As a result the symptoms the dog has been experiencing due to Cushing’s disease will start to diminish.

At the same time the pituitary glands may be producing too much ACTH which is going to encourage the production of more Cortisol. However, the use of Lysodren is going to prevent that request from being honored. If there is significant improvement after the first week with Lysodren then it will be cut down to one or two doses per week to keep the symptoms at bay. However, many dogs will go down hill rapidly and have to go back to daily doses of it. Not all dogs with Crushing’s disease will respond favorably to Lysodren either.

It is important to understand that Lysodren does have some harsh side effects associated with it. In some cases it will destroy too much of the adrenal tissue and that can result in Addison’s disease developing. Approximately 5% of dogs that are given Lysodren will have such a side effect. It is rumored that some veterinarians will do this intentionally so they can charge for the ongoing care of Addison’s disease. If the dog doesn’t get the care it needs they will die from either shock or heart failure due to the lack of steroid hormones that are necessary for survival.

A common side effect though is that there is a reaction to the use of Lysodren. As a result the levels of Cortisol in the blood are lower than they should be. Approximately 1/3 of dogs that use Lysodren will suffer from this. As a result they can experience nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and muscle weakness. Approximately 1% of them can even die from the harsh side effects of Lysodren.