We understand that receiving a diagnosis of cancer can be devastating for pet owners. Our oncology service at Cave Veterinary Specialists aims to support owners throughout their pet’s cancer journey; from diagnosis through treatment and also in the palliative care setting. Our emphasis is always on maintaining good quality of life for pets with cancer, and allowing them to maintain a normal lifestyle as much as possible.
Cancer diagnosis and treatment
As a multidisciplinary referral hospital, at Cave Veterinary Specialists we can provide a comprehensive level of care to reach a diagnosis for pets by the fastest and least invasive means possible. We have a highly skilled on site diagnostic imaging service to provide rapid access to CT, MRI, ultrasound and fluoroscopy as required for cancer diagnosis and staging.
Our oncology service is supported by EBVS® European Veterinary Specialists in veterinary anaesthesia, neurology and neurosurgery, plus orthopaedic and soft tissue surgery. This allows us to provide high quality surgical treatments for a variety of veterinary cancers. Surgical treatments offered include, but are not limited to, cardiothoracic surgery (for lung, cardiac, or mediastinal tumours), abdominal surgery (liver lobectomy, adrenalectomy, gastrointestinal surgery, urological surgery), resection of simple or challenging cutaneous or subcutaneous tumours, oral, dental and maxillofacial surgery, spinal surgery and craniotomy.
At Cave Veterinary Specialists we are proud to offer a twice-weekly chemotherapy clinic that has been providing high quality medical treatment for pets with cancer for many years. Our chemotherapy clinic is led by highly trained chemotherapy nurses alongside our clinicians in veterinary oncology, and as a team we enjoy developing a rapport with our regular patients and clients. This allows us to provide the most compassionate, personalised care for each pet referred to us. We regularly treat a wide range of cancers in the chemotherapy clinic including, but not limited to, lymphoma/leukaemia, mast cell tumour, multiple myeloma, melanoma, histiocytic sarcoma, and haemangiosarcoma. Chemotherapy can be used as a standalone treatment, or alongside other treatment modalities such as surgery or radiotherapy.
Palliative care for pets with cancer
Supportive treatment, pain management, and nutritional support are extremely important when treating pets with cancer. Our oncology clinicians will discuss all aspects of the above in detail with pet owners, when required, to ensure that pets have the best possible quality of life on their cancer journey. When the time does come to say goodbye, we are also able to support our pet owners through this difficult time by assisting with decision making and discussions around quality of life.
Veterinary oncology consultations
During a typical 60-minute oncology consultation, the oncology clinician will review all patient history, imaging, and laboratory data in advance of the appointment. A full history will be taken, including discussion of the pet’s lifestyle, and of any past or concurrent medical problems that require consideration when managing their cancer. A full physical examination will also be performed, utilising EBVS® European Veterinary Specialists from other disciplines when required. This approach allows us to best understand an owners’ priorities and concerns, enabling to provide the most personal and tailored approach possible. Any required diagnostic testing can usually be performed on the day of the consultation, as can initiation of any treatment required, however we are always very happy to allow owners some time to decide upon the best course of action for their pet if this is preferred.
We also provide a virtual consultation service for owners that would rather discuss their pets condition remotely to consider the various options before travelling to us.
Referring a case
We are happy to take veterinary oncology referrals seven days a week, 365 days a year. To refer a routine case, please visit our website to fill out the online referral form:
https://www.cave-vet-specialists.co.uk/veterinary-professionals/referrals
Or, for emergency cases, please call us on 01823 653510.
If you require advice on an oncology case, our oncology clinicians are always very happy to help. Please visit our website for the online advice form, or alternatively call us if you would prefer to discuss your case over the phone.
We are very well equipped to deal with patients presenting with a wide variety of problems including (but not limited to):
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A guide to Chemotherapy for clients
Oncology team
Our veterinary oncology team at Cave Veterinary Specialists is led by Nele Van den Steen and Josh Hardwick, both EBVS® European Veterinary Specialists in Small Animal Internal Medicine, RCVS-recognised Veterinary Specialists, and Diplomates of the European College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. Please see our website for further details, and to meet our wider teams in orthopaedic and soft tissue surgery, neurology and neurosurgery, dental, oral and maxillofacial surgery, veterinary anaesthesia, and diagnostic imaging.
What our clients say...
"Nele has been great with our little Tia."
"Dear Myles and everyone thank you so much for taking such good care of Scruffy, with gratitude, Caroline and Russ”
"Dear Myles, Nele and all the team at Cave Thank you so very much for the beautiful flowers that you sent us. Thank you also for everything that you all did to help our beautiful girl Summer. She’s greatly missed by us all and the house is empty without her."
"Dexter was referred to Cave by our vet in Plymouth last week after being very poorly. He was diagnosed with cancer, which was very hard news and we have decided for him not to be operated on. Dexter has been our baby since we got him at 8 weeks (now 9 years old) and family and friends have always commented on how much dexter is a spoilt pup and how loved he has been, not just by us but family and friends also. The care he has been given at Cave has been amazing, he wags his tail and trots off towards any of the vets or nurses when they come out to see him, even though he has been so poorly he seems to find energy to go say hi to them! Which is so heartwarming! To me this shows how much he loves being with them as much as his family, which I am pleased as it shows how well looked after he has been! I cannot thank Nele and Jess and the ward nurses enough for how well they have cared for Dexter and made him so comfortable and happy, how they have made us feel comfortable with the difficult decisions we have had to make over what has been a very emotional week and how no question has been silly! We have been kept well informed and updated through the week, and often more than once a day! Thank you for seeing us and our feelings equally as important as the care dexter has needed!"
Our veterinary facilities
We offer some of the most advanced veterinary facilities here at Cave Vets, including:
Location & Directions
The Cave Veterinary Specialists practice is located in West Buckland, Somerset.
We are located just off junction 26 of the M5 motorway, and we have prepared a set of simple directions to help you find out practice as easily as possible.