An amazing, exciting and first veterinary case recently occurred at Cornell University, and became a fascinating and optimistic research case published late last year in the journal Frontiers in Veterinary Science.
We used Claude to bring the story.
Tyson is a French bulldog puppy who arrived in the spring of 2023, at the age of three months, for dental treatment at the Cornell University Veterinary Clinic, and was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in his jaw.
The specialists had to remove half of his lower jaw along with the tumor in a complex operation.
With such a large part of the pelvis missing, they predicted that his mouth would never be able to function properly.
However, several months later, imaging showed that the puppy had regrown the bone on the affected side, with it functioning at almost the same level as the original, missing only teeth and a few other anatomical details.
Bone regeneration is not uncommon in young surgical patients, but so far it has been documented mainly in humans, not dogs.
Tyson is the first recorded case in history of this kind.
The lead surgeon, Dr. Alexandra Wright, noted that certain tissues that were left and preserved allowed the regrowth of the jaw. She is optimistic about the chances of more such cases among other dogs that will be diagnosed and treated at a young age and in a way that takes this possibility into account.
Despite multiple surgeries and periods of recovery with an electronic collar cone, Tyson's owners, Melissa Forsythe and Mike Lacanina, report that he is living happily, playing with the soft toys they give him and at Christmas he proudly walked alongside his puppy training group mates.
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