Littleton Veterinary Clinic Honors Patients at Estes Park K9K Walk to Cure Canine Cancer

Denver/Sept. 15, 2009 — National canine cancer statistics are startling—and for staff members at Colorado Veterinary Specialists, the fatal disease too often strikes close to home. Some are cancer survivors themselves, some have seen their pets struggle with the disease and all have given cancer diagnoses to pet owners too frequently.

That personal and professional experience prompted this veterinary hospital in Littleton to participate in the K9K Walk to Cure Canine Cancer in Estes Park on Sept. 19, 2009. The event benefits Denver-based Morris Animal Foundation’s (MAF) Canine Cancer Campaign, which funds research into cancer prevention and treatment.

“It is important for people to understand that we are dedicated to a cure,” says Beth Lewis, DVM, DACVS, whose basset hound Dash is undergoing treatment for lymphoma.

Elizabeth Hanssard, a customer service representative who organized the hospital’s K9K team, lost her Airedale terrier Elszie to osteosarcoma, an all too common and painful bone cancer. “As a cancer survivor myself, I would like to see treatments developed for our canine friends that have a higher success rate.”

The Estes Park K9K was organized by Patty Henderson, whose best friend lost her dog, Emily, to canine cancer. The event will feature three speakers, including Robin Downing, DVM, CVA, CCRP, DAAPM, owner of Windsor Veterinary Clinic and the Downing Center for Animal Pain Management; Deanne Worley, DVM, DACVS, a surgical oncologist at Colorado State University’s Animal Cancer Center; and Patricia Olson, DVM, PhD, MAF President/CEO. Learn more at www.caninek.org/EstesPark/.

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