Can Chemotherapy Negatively Affect the Specific Antibody Response toward Core Vaccines in Canine Cancer Patients? by Prof. Paola Dall’Ara 15884 Can Chemotherapy Negatively Affect the Specific Antibody Response toward Core Vaccines in Canine Cancer Patients? Paola Dall’Ara Associate Professor of Veterinary Immunology and Infectious Diseases of Dogs and Cats Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, University of Milan, Italy Summary Background The increase in canine longevity, brought on by numerous prolonging factors, is accompanied by higher frequency of diagnosis of various morbid conditions such as neoplasms. Even though much is known about canine tumor types and the chemotherapy protocol applied for treatment, little is known about the side effects of these treatments on the dog’s immune system such as the effect on the antibody titers induced by vaccination. Vaccines against Canine Parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2), Canine Distemper Virus (CDV), and Canine Adenovirus (CAdV-1) are classified as core vaccines and are highly recommended for all dogs since they protect against these highly contagious, widespread, and often lethal diseases. Aim The aim of the study was to investigate whether and how antiblastic chemotherapy impacts the antibody response against CPV-2, CDV, and CAdV-1 in cancer-bearing dogs vaccinated before starting chemotherapy. Methods Twenty-one (21) canine patients with different types of malignancies were sampled before, during, and after different chemotherapy protocols to determine their actual levels of seroprotection against CPV-2, CDV, and CadV-1 by using the in-practice test Canine VacciCheck. Differences related to sex, breed size, type of tumor, and chemotherapy protocol were evaluated. Results reading The antibody concentration is defined by the color intensity of the resulting spots of the rapid test and is compared with the “S” units on a scale from 1 to 6. An “S” value of 3 (S3) was standardized to be the equivalent to an antibody titer of 1:80 for CPV-2, 1:32 for CDV, and 1:16 for CAdV-1. Antibody titers equal to or higher than S3 values indicates that the individual is protected against each of these three diseases. Results Almost all dogs maintained excellent protection against the three diseases over the time of the chemotherapy treatment, i.e., 20 out of 21 (95.2%) for distemper, 17 out of 21 (81%) for infectious canine hepatitis, and 16 out of 21 (76.2%) for parvovirus infection. A statistical analysis did not show any significant difference among the different timepoints for any of the three diseases, and consequently the measurable antibody levels did not seem to be negatively affected by the chemotherapy protocols. The antibody levels of the 21 individuals of this study were also compared with the antibody levels of the control group, and no statistical differences were found. Conclusions These results, although preliminary, may be useful in improving the clinical approach to the canine cancer patient, helping veterinarians fully manage their patients, and enabling owners to feel more confident about their pet’s quality of life during treatment, ruling out the risk of incurring dangerous and sometimes fatal viral diseases. Download Study Notice: JavaScript is required for this content. About Prof. Paola Dall’Ara Doctor in Veterinary Medicine – PhD - Associate Professor at Department of Veterinary Medicine (DIMEVET), University of Milan
