Survivors and Celebrations

Toto's Story

Toto was the sweetest poodle you ever met. She was a regular visitor to a local nursing home, preschool, and church. She was loved by so many, and loved everyone she met. At the age of 13, I discovered a tiny lump on her belly about the size of a small pea. Her doctor felt it was in the breast tissue and was most likely a benign cyst, but thought it should be removed and biopsied. It turned out to be an aggressive form of lymphatic breast cancer. She then went through another surgery to remove that mammary gland. She was referred to the University of Wisconsin Oncology Department for an evaluation. After full body X-Ray and ultrasound, they could not find any evidence of any other tumors or masses. She was also in very good condition for her advanced age of 13. She then underwent a 12 week series of chemotherapy. She tolerated the treatments very well. She remained cancer free, and lived another 4 years, when she passed away at almost 17 years old due to complications of her old age. I miss her so much. I now have a new puppy to continue the love.