August 12 2010 / For Immediate Release
Contact: Luke Robinson
Phone: 901.674.9621. E-mail: 2dogs2000miles@gmail.com
Phone: 901.674.9621. E-mail: 2dogs2000miles@gmail.com
FORT COLLINS, CO ― After completing a two-year, 2,300-mile, cross-country cancer walk from Austin to Boston in June with his two dogs, Luke Robinson recently learned one of them, Murphy, has cancer and is now undergoing treatment at Colorado State University’s (CSU’s) Animal Cancer Center.
The walk, known as 2 Dogs 2,000 Miles (http://www.2dogs2000miles.org/) was inspired by Robinson’s loss of his dog, Malcolm, to metastatic bone cancer in 2006. Sharing Malcolm’s story and educating people about the link between cancer in dogs and humans was the primary purpose of the walk and now that it’s over, their mission isn’t.
The walk, known as 2 Dogs 2,000 Miles (http://www.2dogs2000miles.org/) was inspired by Robinson’s loss of his dog, Malcolm, to metastatic bone cancer in 2006. Sharing Malcolm’s story and educating people about the link between cancer in dogs and humans was the primary purpose of the walk and now that it’s over, their mission isn’t.
“It’s kind of a cruel irony,” Robinson says. “Murphy, who’s nine, walked across the country so he’s in excellent shape for his age and he’s been on the best diet available to dogs. It just goes to show, cancer doesn’t always discriminate and that’s why it’s the greatest epidemic facing dogs ever. What started as a walk for me is now a war.”
This war started with a sniffle and took them to CSU. “At first I thought it was just congestion but when I noticed a trace amount of blood in his nasal discharge that concerned me,” says Robinson. A CT scan and biopsy were performed there and the diagnosis came back as adenocarcinoma, a type of cancer found in the glands of both pets and people. “It was trail magic that the cancer was discovered in Colorado. I came here after the walk to work on the book with my editor and CSU has one of the most advanced veterinary oncology programs in the world.”
Dr. Stephen Withrow, professor at CSU and founder of their Clinical Oncology Program agrees, “We have been proudly watching Luke’s journey with his two dogs, Murphy and Hudson, from afar for almost two years. Little did we know that Murphy would become a patient.”
Murphy’s prognosis is promising according to Dr. Susan LaRue, radiation oncologist at CSU. “We hope with Murphy’s treatment we can exceed the median survival for this tumor which is currently 12 to 15 months.”
Luke Robinson has higher hopes. “Murphy’s a fighter and as Winston Churchill once said, ‘In a fight always bet on the one who’s smiling.’”
And Murphy smiles.
4 comments:
And just look at that handsome smile. We love you guys. ;-)
You know Luke, you are my hero. Most people would let life stand between them and the heroic efforts you are making to find a cure for cancer. While we love our pets, we lack the vision to see how we could make the statment against this disease that you have. My hat is off to you sir!
Yes, he does and when he's totally cancer-free the rest of us will smile right along with him.
We lost our boy Guinness in Dec 2009 to osteosarcoma, so I had been following your journey across the country. I am saddened to hear that Murphy is now battling this vile disease too. I will include links from my web site to your blog.
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