Electrochemotherapy in veterinary oncology

Abstract

In veterinary oncology, the clinical studies on electrochemotherapy are not numerous. Electrochemotherapy in veterinary oncology is used with two chemotherapeutic drugs, cisplatin and bleomycin. For the treatment of dogs and horses, mainly cisplatin is used in combination with electric pulses, while for the use in cats, since cisplatin is contraindicated, bleomycin is the drug of choice. In dogs, bleomycin is used, if the tumor is not responsive to cisplatin or if the tumor recurs after electrochemotherapy with cisplatin. The electrodes used for the treatment of tumors in dogs and cats are either plate or needle, while for the treatment of horses, mainly contact electrodes are used. The predominant tumor types treated so far are perianal tumors and mast cell tumors in dogs, squamous cell carcinoma in cats, and sarcoids in horses. The overall response rates are comparable to those obtained in human oncology, and the objective response rate of tumors is 79% in dogs, 88% in cats, and 100% in equids. The typical side effects associated with electrochemotherapy are muscle contraction during application of electrochemotherapy and local edema, which can persist at the treated area for several days. The wound does not need any special care. In conclusion, electrochemotherapy found its place in veterinary oncology, as the method, which is simple in routine and not time-consuming. Hopefully, with the broader availability of generators of electric pulses, electrochemotherapy will be more widely used in veterinary medicine.