Radiation therapy for the treatment of cancer in small animals has been available in Sweden since 2006. This survey of 23 companion dog owners whose dogs had undergone treatment found that from the owner’s perspective, the benefit of radiation therapy outweighed the nuisance for the dog.

This survey questioned owners of dogs who had undergone radiation therapy for malignancy at JAPnkAPping Small Animal Hospital to assess owner attitudes and perceptions of radiation therapy after treatment.

All owners thought their dogs were doing fine during treatment, and all but one of the 23 owners questioned said they would make the same decision about radiation therapy if the same situation occurred. The most important factor in deciding for treatment was the chance to delay tumor related discomfort. Chance of cure and expected side effects were factors of less importance. Time, travel, number of treatments, and cost had low impact on the decision.

In sum, the results of this study showed that from an owner’s perspective radiation therapy is a worthwhile treatment and the impact to the dog seems manageable.