When my corgi Ty was first diagnosed with Lymphoma, I searched for stories of pets who had beaten the odds. Hope is a powerful force and something that pet parents desperately crave when their pets are sick. I wanted nothing more than to read that dogs could beat this terrible disease. Corgi Bella was one of the first success stories that I came across. As of this writing, she has been remission for 50 months. Many oncologists will consider the disease cured when the dog reaches five years. I discovered Bella from her Facebook page, Bella, Warrior Princess, and gained a wealth of knowledge from her posts there, especially in regard to holistic care and immune support. We also have a lot in common. Bella, like Ty and Eve, enjoys agility and canine noseworks. Like myself, her mom is an attorney. Then, of course, there is the corgi connection!. So, when I decided to do a series of posts about individual success stories, I reached out. I am excited to feature Bella as the first of what I hope will be many lymphoma success stories.

Bella’s mom sent me such a well written summary of Bella’s story, that I am publishing it in full as she wrote it. And with that, I present the success story of Bella:
Bella’s Story
Back in 2012, I was blissfully oblivious to the specter of canine cancer. My dogs had all lived to their mid to late teens and I assumed that they would continue to do so. I had two dogs in 2012, a 9 year old collie and a 5 year old corgi, Bella. And she was the light of my life. She was energetic, fun, opinionated, stubborn, argumentative, funny – she held my heart with her big brown eyes. And more than that, she was my agility partner – challenging and athletic, she jumped high and ran like the wind. It was two weeks after a competition that I first noticed that her lymph nodes were swollen. It is amazing to me now that this wasn’t a big concern to me at the time – I just assumed she had a cold and I scheduled a vet appointment for the following week.

It was of course the vet who first mentioned cancer to me, although maybe it could be this or that, or something else. I remember saying, joking, just tell me she isn’t going to die. I will never forget the look my vet gave me. Bella’s blood was drawn and the next day the results were in. “Immature lymphocytes” it said, and I thought great, it’s not so bad, it’s not so advanced, it’s just baby cancer cells. Until the vet told me, she could get me in to see the oncologist tomorrow. Tomorrow? So soon?
The oncologist checked her out and pronounced that Bella’s spleen was enlarged and so she would stage her at Stage IV. How many stages are there, I asked. Five. There are five stages to cancer. And then she said, let me take her out back and start her chemo. Now? I don’t get to think about it? I don’t get to research this? I don’t get a second opinion? This, finally, made me realize how really, really serious this diagnosis was. This ended my oblivion, and opened up my world to canine cancer.

On the advice of a friend, I contacted Smith Ridge Veterinary Hospital and this was my first exposure to holistic, non-traditional veterinary practices. With their input and support, I developed my dual treatment for Bella. I would run the full course of chemo for Bella, and kill as many cancer cells as possible. But I would also care for her holistically and I became the guardian of Bella’s immune system. With the guidance of the holistic veterinarian, I strengthened her system against the cancer as well as the chemo. During her breaks from chemo, she underwent liver cleansing and detoxing, to rid her body of dead cancer cells and chemo by-products, so that her little body could handle the next onslaught of chemo.
We learned about diet, and Bella went from a kibble eater to a raw food diet. I made her additional food supplements, feeding her whole sardines to up her omega 3s, feeding her coconut oil to increase ketogenic reactions in her cells, adding fresh ginger to aid in digestion, organic blueberries for more anti-oxidants. Whatever I could think of, I fed to her to feed her immune system.
I changed how a kept house. I made my own floor and counter cleaners of water, white vinegar and peppermint oil, getting rid of boxes of cleaning chemicals. I threw out my scented candles. I switched to scent-free detergents. I stopped fertilizing my beautiful lawn and let it slowly shift to a more natural but less groomed look. I stopped walking her around town during the winter, to protect her from de-icing chemicals.

I changed Bella’s veterinary care. She no longer receives any vaccinations but instead her blood is tittered, showing that her immunity to distemper and rabies is strong. She never receives any topical flea and tick treatments but instead is brushed and flea combed to remove any lingering pests. She receives no heartworm preventative but rather, is kept inside at dawn and dusk to minimize exposure to mosquitoes.
When we finished chemo in May, 2013 we had a final visit with Bella’s oncologist. Now don’t worry when she comes out of remission in the fall, she said, we have other drugs we can use to put her back into remission. That moment was my low point. All that we had been through, all the time and the money and the tears – and the oncologist said we’d just have the summer?
But Bella has not come out of remission. She was young and strong when cancer hit, and she remains incredibly strong now at over 9 years of age. She continues to train and compete in agility and canine scent work. She is 21 pounds of fighting spirit. Her eyes are bright, her coat is like silk, her teeth are a beautiful untarnished white and fifty months after first being declared to be in remission, she remains cancer-free.

Bella still sees her original vet every 6-8 weeks for a cancer check and chiropractic adjustment. We talk about why Bella is different, why she has succeeded where so many have not. I think it’s more than just luck, although luck has its role. What I have learned over the past four years is that we cannot underestimate the impact upon our dogs of commercially prepared foods, house and lawn chemicals that soak into pads, vaccines that inflict live viruses into their muscles, topical pest controls that are meant to kill other living beings, heartworm preventatives that fill their bodies with arsenic. Our dogs’ immune systems are under constant assault.

I said earlier, that I am the guardian of Bella’s immune system. I believe that. I am vigilant as to what goes into her body, and what her body is exposed to. Bella is here for a purpose. She is like a beacon to other cancer fighters, of what can happen with good food, a clean environment and a reduction of insults to the immune system.

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Febraury 2018 update: In June 2017, Bella came out of remission after 53 months. That is an amazing remission time. She redid the CHOP chemo protocol and is again in full remission.
Bella also now has a book! Check it out on Amazon.com (affiliate link)!
I can’t forget that feeling when your vet tells you your beloved pet has cancer. Sadly I heard it 3 times for 3 cats. Luckily the cancer in my first cat was caught “in time” and she lived another 2 years. My second cat had a very nasty aggressive form and after a few months of chemo we stopped because it was no longer working. He was with us just a few short weeks. Sadly my third cat had to be put down right away. Sorry for being such a downer. I certainly understand your need to search for stories of hope during such a tough time, and it’s encouraging to read how many pets have beaten the odds.
This is great! What an awesome story of a dog with a lot of fight in her and an owner who will stop at nothing to give her baby the best chance to win possible! Thanks for sharing and good luck in your journey with your own pup. Sending lots of love and good vibes your way from our pack!
I love happily ever after stories and especially when they involve a friend. Bella is truly a warrior princess ♥
Love, hugs and purrs to Bella! This is a wonderful article and helpful and hopeful to any of us who have, or have had fur kids with serious medical conditions. My precious Miss P. lived with severe asthma for 18 years and with great veterinary care and adjustments to the home, she was healthy and happy until the last week of her life and she enriched ours for those 18 years.
Way to go, Bella, kicking cancer’s butt!
Love this post! Our Chip was diagnosed with Stage IV lymphoma in August 2016 and had the final CHOP treatment yesterday!!! I am delving into the holistic maintenance routine right now. Thanks for sharing your girl with us.
It’s awesome how she beat her illness and is continuing to do agility and scentwork! Her owner is very dedicated.
Way to go Bella… kick cancers ass in the name of all those who lost their fight.
I love that she describes herself as the guardian of Bella’s immune system. I agree that we are all (dogs and people alike) under constant assault by all the crap in our food, cleaning products, environment, etc. We clean mostly with vinegar as well.
Bella is a fighter and I really appreciate you sharing her story. My friend’s dog (3 years old) was recently diagnosed with canine lymphoma and I sent her the link to this story so she can see an example of a dog who has been in remission for years and, hopefully find some hop during a difficult time.
What a fighter! We lost Sooty to Lymphoma, we didn’t have any hope at all. I’m glad she has hope!
First off, congratulations on being s Nose to Nose Finalist! What an accomplishment. This is a great post, it’s incredibly inspirational. Bella is a stunning Corgi. I really admire her and her mom’s courage and tenacity. Not everyone has the strength & gumption to go the distance like that for their pet. I’m so happy for them! I hope Bella stays in remission for the rest of her life. I love the clean, organic lifestyle they’ve created. Thanks for sharing their story!
Love & biscuits,
Dogs Luv Us and We Luv Them
Way to go! It’s amazing how a fresh diet can improve our pet’s health and lifestyle. My dog has a horrible neurological condition and I feed him a home cooked diet (he can’t digest raw) and use foods to support his health. We were able to get off a lot of medications with our change. Great post and inspiration.
I’m so glad that Bella has been healthy for such a long time now! Both Bella and her mom are inspirations!
I’m so happy to hear Bella is a survivor.
I remember hearing the word CANCER with my previous Persian and unfortunately, she only lived one more month. I understand there isn’t as much research on cats as dogs.
I’m so glad to hear that Bella was able to beat her cancer. I love a story with a happy ending! It is so true that our pets’ immune systems (and ours) are under constant assault in our environment. We are so blessed that most of us have immune systems that are strong enough to take this world on.
Wow, what an inspiring story!!
fresh diet all the way! WHAT a cutie! So nice to have a happy story.
What a wonderful, encouraging story. We lost my very first dog to lymphoma. We only got 3 months, but most of that time was of very good quality. That was almost 18 years ago though, and I’m sure treatments have come a long way; and I would do so much more now. I think all the holistic treatments must be a big factor in Bella’s success.
How is Bela doing now? I just stumbled across this post many months later. I would love to tell Bella’s story on my Canine Cancer Concerns website where I talk about products and techniques that have been tried for different types of cancer. My site is quite new and is at http://www.caninecancerconcerns.com. I also had an agility dog who developed cancer. Please feel free to email me. I would love to host your story on my site.
Bella recently came out of remission but is redoing chemo and is back in remission again. Are you asking to republish my story of her in full? If so, I can’t let you do that as I do not want material from my site duplicated elsewhere.