[Gribouilli]

Does anyone use Tamixifen to prevent or treat tumor in their female rats?

http://www.ratfanclub.org/tamox.html

 

[Gribouilli]

Anyone? It would be particularly useful for a female rat who is prone to multiple tumors, or to shrink an existing tumor. I know that women who have a high family risk for breast cancer take it as prevention or after being treated for it so the cancer won't come back.

 

[DustyRat]

I hadn't heard of it till now. Very interesting.

 

[Gribouilli]

Anyone using Tamoxifen?

 

[MeepMoop]

Since my heart rat just got a tumor, I've been scoring the internet finding whatever information I can, and I read that entire article by Debbie top-to-bottom earlier today. It's very interesting! Sadly, though, it's only in regards to malignant tumors, which is a shame because mine currently has a benign.

 

[Gribouilli]

Since my heart rat just got a tumor, I've been scoring the internet finding whatever information I can, and I read that entire article by Debbie top-to-bottom earlier today. It's very interesting! Sadly, though, it's only in regards to malignant tumors, which is a shame because mine currently has a benign.

It is for both benign and cancerous tumors!

 

[Rat Daddy]

I was planning on trying Sodium dichloroacitate on our last rat that had tumors, but she died three days after I got the medication.... Thankfully I haven't needed it since...

Most cancer drugs are tested on rats but it's almost impossible to get free access to medical and research abstracts since search companies have made a lucrative business out of charging for them... If you know anyone who has access to a search engine that searches research archives, I'll bet there will be lots of useful information there....

I might add that most of the tumors induced in rats aren't the common non malignant variety found in our girls. Still I'm betting there's a ton of useful information behind the pay to see walls for the person with the time to dig for it.

 

[Gribouilli]

Bumping it up in hopes someone has used it and can add to the discussion.

 

[Finnebon]

I would love to hear more of this too. My old boy with HED has a huge tumor that's growing aggressively. I'd like to maybe try something else if I can..

As far as holistic approach, I'm sure most people have heard of turkey tail mushroom by now. I've had great success with it in certain types of tumors, but I have no idea what type of tumors they actually are. I give it mixed with a variety of other stuff when my rats get tumors. In one rat, it stopped growth of a tumor so much that the vet cancelled the surgery and thought maye it was just scar tissue rather than a tumor since it hadn't grown in such a long time. So I stopped giving her the supplement. Soon after I stopped, the tumor started growing again and growing quicker and then needed it removed. It worked on that tumor but not on another one she had.

My HED boy I mentioned has the huge fast growing tumor that seems totally unaffected by the supplements. But he has/had 3 other tumors. 1 bb sized tumor in each armpit, and one almond sized tumor on his side, maybe a mammary tumor? similar location anyway. Well the two bb sized ones are completely gone, the almond sized one is now noticibly smaller.

I'm not sure what exactly is happening but I would really like to know more about any type of tumor control or why certain things work on certain tumors and why. I figure it's at least worth it to try the turkey tail because it sometimes really seems to help my rats when they have them. Just not always.

 

[Rat Daddy]

I tried turkey tail and shark cartilage in capsule format on one rat with a mammary tumor, it might have helped slow it down a little... I can't say it didn't help, but I won't say it did. For the most part, I think we try most of these things because we don't want to do nothing.

The Sodium dichloroacitate is supposed to work by stopping the way tumors create energy anaerobically. It's used off label by humans and I've read lots of success stories on line.... again I can't say how true it is. It's also a chemical that's hard to get from a reputable source. I talked to a pharmacist who said she has compounded it for humans, in fact it does come in human and research grades and noted it was successful in treating some human tumors... but technically it isn't something doctors are supposed to prescribe.

"Tamoxifen blocks the actions of estrogen, a female hormone. Certain types of breast cancer require estrogen to grow." (from some web site) If this is true and it has a similar effect in rats, it might be effective in mammary tumors in younger female rats. Usually I've seen mammary tumors in older rats, (between one and two years old) who's estrogen levels (or similar rat hormone) would already be reduced.

I think I'd go for something that directly attacks the tumors energy or growth cycle rather than shooting at a hormone blocker if I were looking for a magic bullet. But I would be more than happy to be totally wrong.

Best luck.