Places to get Acro treated and notes I took in Sept 2015

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Anne & Hyde (GA)

Anne & Hyde (GA)

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I wanted to share that I did some preliminary research into places to have Hyde's Acro treated. Here is what I found. I thought that someone else could benefit from some of my leg work. Long post :)

Places I contacted
  • Colorado State (970) 297 - 5000
Spoke at length with Dr Swift​
  • What is treatment regimen?
1 day CT and planning, 3 days radiation (3 fractions)​
  • Tests/prep in advance?
see an internist - listen to heart - scan if hear anything unusual.​
  • How many Acro cats been treated?
2 a quarter - maybe 10 annually
ages range from 10 - 16 years old generally​
  • Outcome?
of 7 cats in 2015, all had 50 % or greater reduction in insulin needs
Too few cats to have a median survival number yet​
  • Side effects of treatment?
near optic nerves - less than 5% become blind
acute (after 1-2 treatments) - reversible with fluids/steroids at treatment facility
early delay (weeks to months) - change in neurological status (become slower/"dumpy") - supportive care (steroids/fluids)
Late effect (years) - change in neurological status (become slower/"dumpy") - not reversible (less than 5% of cats)​
  • Cost of treatment?
CT & 3 days treatment - $7500
Internist consult extra​
  • The Oncology Service, Leesburg, VA (571) 209-1176
Spoke with receptionist, Tina. She said it was the second Acro cat that week (I think Orem was the other) Dr. White is the doctor. Cost of treatment would be $200 for a consult with the radiologist. $1200 to get a CT scan at Bush Neurology across the street. $200 for the positioning device. Treatment would be $3000 - $8000​
  • NC State (919) 513-6690
They did not want to speak with me in detail re treatment. They did say that they would speak to my vet but he refused to call them on my behalf. This is what they did say.

treatment regime - 1, 3, 5 days of radiation treatment depending on the results of the CT scan

cost of treatment - $5500 - 6500 including consult and CT

schedule - veterinary referral needed - general appointment was 1 month away, emergency appointments available sooner.​

Places I did not call that do SRT/Cyberknife
  • Veterinary CyberKnife Cancer Center, Malvern, PA (844) 738 - 2927
  • VCA Animal Specialty Center, Yonkers, NY (914) 457 - 4000
  • Redbank Veterinary Hosp, Cherry Hill, NJ (856) 429 - 4394
Places doing surgery (hypophysectomy, I think)
  • Washington State University, Pullman, WA (509) 335-0711
 
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Looks like I'd better ask again about the CSU costs - last time we were there it was $3800 and I was told it was still around the same price.

Cyberknife Robotic Radiosurgery does more beams than SRT which is in turn more than conventional radiation. I just have old pricing, but it was more expensive although their OTJ rate is better than SRT. It is also offered at CVS (California Veterinary Specialists).

There are several other places that now offer SRT. For a good explanation of the different types of radiation, check out this page at the U of Florida.
http://smallanimal.vethospital.ufl....ogy-radiation-treatment/radiosurgery_history/

And for a list of sites (around the world) and their radiation capabilities: members of the vet cancer society.
 
Oh my! Knew this would be pricey but I was thinking $5000 at the most. Thanks for putting this together Anne! Now I have an idea of what to ask about in the future. When I get to the point of looking into treatment options I'll be sure to post my breakdown here as well for others :)
 
I have an update on the CSU costs, based on what I was quoted and paid last week. For the standard one day of CT followed by 3 days (and fractions) of SRT, I was given a quote of low end $5908 to high end $7213. These quotes were for all in, including IM vet time. Neko came home with me each night so no overnight costs. The main difference between the high end and the low end is whether or not an MRI was needed to spot the tumour. This time too, it was visible via CT scan.

Due to Neko's heart arrythmia after the first day of anesthesia, we elected to do a non standard one day/one fraction higher dose SRT. We had extra costs for an EKG and services of the board certified anesthiologist. Total cost, $5000. Note that NCSU also does the one day of SRT option.
 
And one more thing, the radiation oncologist at CSU said they'd just had a presentation from Cyberknife the week before, and there is also a place in Florida that offers it now.
 
Purdue University Veterinary Teaching Hospital in West Lafayette, IN also offers both the surgery (hypophysectomy) and SRT treatment. They had never performed this surgery before, but the neuro doctor was willing to "try" it...YIKES...that word scared me a little, but I understand someone has to be the guinea pig. As for the radiation, I remember the cost being $3800-$4000. When I was there, I asked the doctor how many cases of acromegaly had they seen and the answer shocked me....just ONE, and that was two years ago! As for life expectancy after radiation, around 18 months was their answer. It appears that Wendy&Neko have that beat.
 
Good to know about Purdue as another option - at least for SRT.

A phrase from one of the surgeons at Royal Veterinary College (who have done the most hypophysectomies on acromegalic cats in the world) - the success of the surgery is in directly related to the experience of the surgeon. They have done over 30 of them but it's still not 100% success rate. West LA - VCA Vet Hospitals also has experience in hypophysectomy for acrocats and were the first in the US to do so.

Colorado State University had seen over 30 cases over 3 years ago when I asked, I didn't ask this time.

Places I know you can get SRT in Canada are the Western Veterinary Specialists and the University of Saskatchewan (Saskatoon) Veterinary Medical School.
 
Hey Everyone! Sorry I haven't been around for a while but I'm starting to consider treatment again for my acro girl. Fiancé and I've been discussing the possibility of taking out a loan to pay for treatment so I've been asking around about costs. This is what I have so far and I'll update this post as I get more info.

  • Ryan Veterinary Hospital (Part of Penn Hospital), Philadelphia PA -- Very surprisingly, they actually don't do anything for acro but pointed me to a few other places that do. Figured I'd add this just so people don't wonder (if they were).
  • Redbank Veterinary Hosp, Cherry Hill, NJ -- They don't preform SRT at the Cherry Hill branch. Only at the Tinton Falls NJ location.
    • Consult fee - $175
    • CT and radiation - "Ballpark figure" $5500-$6500
  • Veterinary CyberKnife Cancer Center, Malvern, PA -- These guys gave me good info and I'm gonna paraphrase the email they sent me.
    • First there is a consultation with Dr. Haney (no price given) followed by a CT scan. After the scan they start the radiation planning process which could take 3-5 days. They then schedule for treatments which are typically 1-3 sessions. They usually recommend 3 sessions for acromegaly. The estimated cost of CyberKnife at this location is as follows:
      • CT scan and 1 CyberKnife treatment: $5500-$5800
      • CT scan and 2 CyberKnife treatments: $7500-$7800
      • CT scan and 3 CyberKnife treatments: $9500-$9800
Hope you're all well and all kitties are still purry and eating their fuds :cat:
 
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Hi!

I don't have an acrocat, but what surprises me every time I come to this Board is the price that Americans pay for their diabetic cats.
I'm still hallucinating about the price of Lantus in US. Here, in France, we pay 50 € for 5 pens of Lantus.
And when your cat spent 3 days at the ER, it's around 300 €, not 6000 $!!!!
So, maybe it would be a good option to investigate how much is a treatment for acromegaly in France.
The very very best veterinary school in France is located in Maison Alfort, near Paris, and it's where you have the better specialists of everything.
They are really cheaper than a usual vet.
Their website : http://www.vet-alfort.fr/
And the oncology part : http://centredecancerologieveterinaire.fr/index.html

If you want me to translate anything, or to get directly in contact with them for you, don't hesitate!

Sophie
 
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The best treatment for acrocats in Europe is with the Royal Veterinary College in London, England. But they do hypophysectomy, not stereostatic radiation therapy, and have a lot of experience with successful outcomes with that surgery. The cost for the surgery is fairly similar in the UK as in the US. The radiation therapy offered at the vet school website you refer to is standard linear radiation therapy, not SRT. The SRT and CyberKnife radiation machines are much more expensive, so the service costs more.
 
You're better than me in translation!
I'm quite unsure about their website updating, because when I do some searches in French on Google, I find that they do nearly everything in terms of radiotherapy.
And there is also the Fregis hospitals, http://www.fregis.com, that I can contact if you're interested in having some prices about acromegaly treatment.
 
I want to look further into treatment for Lily. Where do I start? Any suggestions? I live in Naples Florida. Does the Univ of Florida treat feline acromegaly patients? Are they good? I only want the best. I understand Dr Lunn at NC Univ is one of the best. Any suggestions on how to start would be appreciated!!
 
I would start by putting together a list of questions like Anne did above. In addition to cost, I'd ask about number of acrocats treated to date, outcomes, number of days of treatment and type of radiation therapy used. Not all use stereostatic radiation therapy. Then figure out how far you are willing to travel and start contacting the vet schools within that distance. There is a vet college at University of Florida in Gainseville. Several other places and their contact info is contained in this thread. Colorado State University has probably treated the most cats since their program has been around the longest. The place in Yonkers that does Cyberknife is more expensive but has some good results to date. The folks at CSU told me there is now a place in Florida doing Cyberknife, but I don't have the name.
 
Today I called the Univ of Florida. Could not give me much information over the phone. I would have to make an appointment for an evaluation which is $150. They are willing to do a consultation with my vet over the phone free of charge.
 
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