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My dog has lymphoma. What are affordable treatment options available?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | American Pit Bull Terrier | Male | unneutered | 9 years old | 55 lbs

Our dog has lymphoma, he has been to the vet and we don’t have the money for treatment. We figured out he had the cancer 2 months ago tops and he hasn’t showed any signs of it besides, trouble breathing and the knots are swelling tremendously. I don’t know what to do or how to go about this, can you help?

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on January 15th, 2018

Hi there. I am sorry that Cain is having this issue. When clients cannot afford to do the long course of chemotherapy the next best option is to do high doses of oral steroids (prednisone) which is extremely inexpensive. A dog his size would it would probably only cost you $20 or less a month to do this. Did your vet not offer you this option? The prednisone will not cure the lymphoma but it will certainly slow the course of disease. It will reduce the swelling of the lymph nodes for sure. This may only help for a few months but it is better than no treatment. If you are not going to do any treatment at all the best option is humane euthanasia so that Cain does not suffer. Really, I think you and Cain will be very happy with steroid therapy. Please call your vet back and ask about this option. Hope this helps. Best wishes.

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    Answered By Dr. Strydom, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on August 24th, 2019

    I’m sorry to hear this. Unfortunately the only way to treat lymphoma is with chemotherapy. You need to have a consult with a veterinary oncologist so they can give you all of your options. The only cheap treatment is using steroids, namely prednisone, but all that does is slow down the progression of the cancer. It does not cure it. It may only buy you another couple of weeks or months.

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