Selected cancer treatments with a current access pathway outside ordinary clinical trials.
Oncept
A DNA vaccine for dogs with oral melanoma after the tumor and affected lymph nodes have been controlled with surgery or radiation. It uses instructions for human tyrosinase, a pigment-related protein, to help the immune system recognize melanoma cells.
Oral melanoma
Evidence
Published results are mixed. A study comparing records of 45 dogs with locally controlled oral melanoma found no longer survival or time without progression in vaccinated dogs than in unvaccinated dogs.
Other studies report outcomes in vaccinated dogs, but many lack a comparable unvaccinated group. A survival benefit remains uncertain despite USDA licensure.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA — administered through a veterinary oncology team. It is used after local treatment and is not a vaccine to prevent cancer in healthy dogs.
Oncept information → · Comparative study
Laverdia (verdinexor)
An oral treatment for dogs with lymphoma. It blocks XPO1, a protein that moves other proteins out of the cell nucleus, helping keep growth-control proteins where they can act against cancer cells.
LymphomaB-cell lymphomaT-cell lymphoma
Evidence
In the randomized study supporting full FDA approval, 134 dogs were evaluated for effectiveness. Median time before lymphoma progressed was 37 days with Laverdia and 23 days with placebo.
This measured delay in progression, not overall survival. The comparison was with placebo, not CHOP, so it does not show that Laverdia provides the same benefit as standard combination chemotherapy.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA — prescription tablets given at home, with veterinary monitoring. Appetite loss, weight loss and digestive side effects can occur; handling and dosing instructions matter.
FDA approval and safety information → · Our explainer
Tanovea (rabacfosadine)
An intravenous chemotherapy drug for dogs with lymphoma. It interferes with DNA copying in cancer cells and is given at the veterinary clinic to help shrink or control the disease.
LymphomaB-cell lymphomaT-cell lymphoma
Evidence
In a randomized placebo-controlled study, lymphoma shrank or became undetectable in 82 of 112 dogs receiving Tanovea (73%), including 57 complete responses. The placebo response rate was 6%.
A complete response means no detectable cancer at assessment, not a cure. The study did not compare Tanovea directly with CHOP chemotherapy.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA — administered by a veterinary team, with blood-count and other safety checks. Serious, sometimes fatal lung fibrosis is a known risk. It must not be used in West Highland White Terriers or dogs with chronic lung disease that could lead to fibrosis.
Tanovea information and safety →
APAVAC / Vaxkit
A vaccine made from the dog’s own tumor sample, used alongside chemotherapy for B-cell lymphoma. It exposes the immune system to tumor proteins to help it recognize cancer cells.
B-cell lymphoma
Evidence
In a randomized study of 19 dogs with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, median lymphoma-specific survival was 505 days with vaccine plus chemotherapy and 159 days with chemotherapy alone.
The result is encouraging, but the trial was small and studied one lymphoma subtype. It does not establish the same benefit for every dog or chemotherapy protocol.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA / Canada / Europe — veterinarian-directed autologous vaccine platform.
Not a contemporary standard-of-care replacement.
Vaxkit access & contact →
Aurelius adoptive T-cell therapy
An experimental immune-cell treatment for B-cell lymphoma. T cells from the dog’s blood are grown and activated in a laboratory, then returned by intravenous infusion to help attack cancer cells.
B-cell lymphoma
Evidence
A 2012 study of this approach treated 8 dogs after CHOP chemotherapy. Median survival was 392 days, compared with 167 days in 12 dogs from earlier records that received CHOP alone.
The comparison was small and used historical controls, not randomly assigned groups. It supports further study of T-cell therapy but does not establish the outcome of today’s commercial protocol.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA — veterinarian-directed experimental treatment from Aurelius Biotherapeutics in Bellingham, Washington.
Experimental therapy; USDA licensure is pending.
Aurelius access & protocol →
ELIAS Cancer Immunotherapy (ECI)
An immune treatment for dogs with osteosarcoma after amputation. A vaccine made from the removed tumor primes the immune response; the dog’s T cells are then collected, activated and returned to help target cancer cells elsewhere in the body.
Osteosarcoma
Evidence
In a published pilot study of 14 dogs treated after amputation, median survival was 415 days; 5 dogs lived more than two years. There was no chemotherapy comparison group.
A later randomized study compared ECI with carboplatin, but ELIAS still lists its publication as pending. The pilot alone cannot show that ECI is better than standard chemotherapy.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA — veterinarian-directed ELIAS Cancer Immunotherapy (ECI).
Requires amputation and usable autologous tumor material.
ELIAS access information →
Gilvetmab
An antibody treatment for dogs with mast cell tumors or malignant melanoma. It blocks PD-1, a signal that can hold back immune cells, helping them attack the cancer.
Mast cell tumorOral melanomaMelanoma — other
Evidence
In a 2026 study, tumors shrank or disappeared in 12 of 26 dogs with mast cell tumors (46%) and 5 of 25 dogs with melanoma (20%).
There was no comparison group, so the study cannot show whether gilvetmab works better than other treatments or extends survival. Stable disease was counted separately from tumor shrinkage.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA — available through specialists practicing veterinary oncology under USDA conditional licensure.
The published efficacy study was single-arm.
Gilvetmab access / oncologist →
Radioactive iodine (I-131)
Radioactive iodine is taken up by some thyroid cancers and delivers radiation inside the tumor. It may help when surgery cannot remove the cancer completely or it has spread, but only if a scan shows enough iodine uptake.
Thyroid carcinomaThyroid tumor / carcinoma
Evidence
A 2005 review of 65 dogs with thyroid carcinoma reported median survival of 30 months for dogs receiving radioactive iodine alone and 34 months when it was combined with surgery.
These were selected patients reviewed from medical records, not randomly assigned treatment groups. The figures do not predict an individual dog’s survival or prove an advantage over other treatments.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA — available at a limited number of nuclear-medicine centers, including University of Missouri Veterinary Health Center and Advanced Veterinary Medical Imaging (AVMI), Tustin, California.
Not every canine thyroid carcinoma takes up enough iodine for treatment. Recent iodinated CT contrast can interfere with uptake; candidacy and timing must be determined by the treating center.
Access information →
Toceranib (Palladia)
An oral targeted drug that blocks signals involved in tumor growth and blood-vessel formation. Veterinary oncologists sometimes use it off-label to help control thyroid carcinoma.
Thyroid carcinomaThyroid tumor / carcinoma
Evidence
A review of 42 dogs with thyroid carcinoma included 26 receiving toceranib without previous cancer treatment. In that group, the median time before the cancer progressed was 206 days.
This was a review of medical records without a randomized comparison group. It suggests the drug can control some thyroid cancers but does not show that it is better than surgery or radiation.
Study details →
Access and limitations
USA — prescription treatment managed by a veterinary oncologist; no single research center is required.
Off-label for canine thyroid carcinoma; retrospective evidence rather than a randomized trial. Response is not guaranteed and adverse effects require veterinary monitoring.
Access information →
