Benson was diagnosed with Lymphoma during the Christmas period of 2011, which manifested in many lumps on his tongue. It took some time to reach diagnosis as there was lots of consulting involved with experts in the field by our vets so he had already had the lumps for several months that we knew of by this point, this could have been much longer as a lot of the Sarcoma weren’t easily visible.
We were told that due to his blood tests it seemed that the Lymphoma had already likely spread and Benson would only be with us for 2-3 months longer. The only surgical option due to the extent of the Sarcoma covering his tongue would have been to completely remove his tongue which of course we wouldn’t consider. We were offered the option of chemo but were told this wouldn’t be very helpful, it may prolong Benson’s life slightly. I briefly considered this option as I felt I had to do something but knew it wasn’t the right thing to do so asked our vets to find out if there was any holistic options for us.
We were referred to Nick Thompson and met with him in January of 2012 starting Benson on CV247 and feeding a raw diet supplemented with turmeric. We also gave him mineral water rather than tap water. Benson didn’t show any signs of ill health for almost two years and the more obvious Sarcoma on his tongue even reduced in size. Benson continued to lead a healthy and happy life that was only complicated by an old injury he had in his back leg that caused him to sometimes become tense along his back so we commenced Bowen therapy. In the summer of 2013 Benson tore one of his Cruciate Ligaments which meant he had to have reduced exercise but still seemed to be suffering no ill effects from the cancer.
On January 15th 2014 I came home from work to find that Benson wouldn’t stand up. He had gone into the garden then had laid down on the grass and just wasn’t interested in coming back inside, we called the vet out who believed that Benson had fluid on his lungs and that this was due to the spread of the cancer. We said our Good Byes to Benson that evening, following the advice of the vet. The previous day Benson had gone for a walk to the local park and had seemed happy to see people. In hindsight I should had been suspicious that he didn’t try to jump at people to kiss their faces which up until that day he had always done despite his problems in his back legs!
I believe CV247 gave us two years with Benson that we wouldn’t have had. During this time Benson was happy and seemed to be pain free from the cancer. Looking back I think he did seem to have less energy during the last two weeks of his life but is wasn’t enough to cause concern. Benson was 7 when he was diagnosed with cancer and died at age 9 less than 4 months before his 10th birthday. Another important consideration was that not only did Benson seem well and unhindered by the cancer but he also didn’t have to suffer any side effects of any medication and enjoyed good health generally due to the good nutrition he received.