'Lives depend on it:' Families fight for access to life-saving vet procedure at NC State

Since 2008, a hundred dogs have been treated with a bone marrow transplant at NC State's vet school. It's the last shot at hope for the families of many sick pups – but a month ago the novel program went on an indefinite hold, taking no new clients.

Thirteen animals are currently on the waitlist. One family on the wait list hopes their April appointment will hold as the program pauses – and other families are in limbo. NC State says it will handle each wait-listed family on a case-by-case basis.

The petition has drawn heartbreaking comments, like, "My 4-year-old Golden is waiting for this procedure at NC State and we never heard back from them. This is the only way to save her life! Please reinstate this program as soon as possible. Lives depend on it!"

Among other dogs waiting for the life-saving procedure is Meredith and David Miller's dog named Blaze – a 4-year-old English Shepherd.

Blaze and his family live in Maryland.

"He has been the best dog," says his family. "Our hiking buddy. Our running buddy. He has been everything to us."

Blaze was diagnosed on Nov. 22 after months of inconclusive testing and a painful, confusing journey. His lymph nodes began swelling in July. They began pushing on his trachea, and he ended up getting pneumonia.

"He went from doing a 5-mile run with me, to laying on the ground struggling to breathe," his family says.

For 99% of dogs, lymphoma it is a death sentence with no cure – but dogs that have this bone marrow transplant have a chance to survive.

When his family discovered the program at NC State, they say it was a light at the end of a dark tunnel.

"Chemotherapy, even if it does work, remission is short-lived ... It can last from a week to the year," says his family. "Without a bone marrow transplant, there is no chance for him."

In November, they had a conference call with NC State leaders. They were put on a waitlist, expecting to have Blaze in at NC State for the procedure in around six months.

"We are wait listed for early April," they say.

The procedure offers a 99% cure rate.

The procedure will essentially extract stem cells from a donor dog's blood – and then Blaze would go through radiation. Afterwards, he'd

stay in an isolation unit in a sterile environment.

It would cost them around $35,000, and that's in addition to the $40,000 they've already put into Blaze's treatments.

Outside of NC State, there is one other vet that can do the procedure -- all the way in Washington.

"Very few veterinary facilities in the United States offer bone marrow transplants as a treatment for animals with cancer. At the NC State Veterinary Hospital, we are not accepting new bone marrow transplant patients at this time as we pause to proactively conduct an external review of the novel program.

"Bone marrow transplants can be difficult for already very sick animals, who then also have to spend a prolonged period of time away from their homes. Through this review, we want to carefully understand the risks versus rewards of this treatment. Providing animals with the best and most humane care possible will always be our priority.

"Our hospital team will be back in touch with individuals as soon as additional information is available."

NC State officials also told WRAL News, "The decision was made about a month ago to not accept new bone marrow transplant patients at this time as we pause to proactively conduct an external review of the novel program. The Bone Marrow Transplant Program began in 2008 and about 100 patients have been treated to date."

While NC State is not accepting new program patients at this time, program leaders say they are in communication with the small group of clients that had already started the process – and each treatment plan will continue on a case-by-case basis.