My Amazing Job!

During my year here, I’ve seen a lot of amazing things happen.  Dogs that have to be carried or brought in on a gurney, return the following week walking, wagging their tails.  Tumors and lymph nodes shrinking, to almost nothing, with one dose of chemotherapy.  Dogs and cats going into remission for years, coming in for just rechecks to show us how happy and healthy they are.    Even more amazing is the things I’ve seen now that I am part of the radiation team here at the VCC.    Together with Dr. Farrelly and Stephen, we have treated 63 patients; each with their own unique radiation protocol.  

One amazing case we just finished with is Faith, a 9 year old mixed breed dog with a pituitary gland tumor.  The most amazing thing about this case (other than the fact that her owners found her in the woods of Maine as a puppy, and she resembles the most beautiful wolf you will ever see!) was that we were about to treat her brain!  I cannot express how amazed I was being part of her treatment.  I watched as Dr. Farrelly used a CT scan of her brain and films from the radiation machine to pinpoint where he wanted us to radiate her.  Faith did absolutely amazing during her 20 daily radiation treatments, and even became very comfortable with us (despite her clear reservations in the beginning).    I loved seeing her everyday…kissing her head…hoping that all this amazing work would help her live a long, cancer-free life!

Tara McNama, LVT