Rabies Associated Sarcoma VAS

VAS was first recognized at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in 1991.An association between highly aggressive fibrosarcomas and typical vaccine location (between the shoulder blades) was made. Two possible factors for the increase of VAS at this time were the introduction in 1985 of vaccines for rabies and feline leukemia virus (FeLV) that contained aluminum adjuvant, and a law in 1987 requiring rabies vaccination in cats in Pennsylvania.In 1993, a causal relationship between VAS and administration of aluminum adjuvanted rabies and FeLV vaccines was established through epidemiologic methods, and in 1996 the Vaccine-Associated Feline Sarcoma Task Force was formed to address the problem.

Unfortunately, even with aggressive surgery alone, relatively few cats with VAS are cured. This is because the tumor is like an octopus - it has unseen tentacles that reach out far from the visible tumor.

This means that the first attempt to remove this tumor has to be radical, major surgery. Your chances of curing your pet are greatest if this is done by a veterinary surgeon who specializes in removal of feline fibrosarcomas. Combining this aggressive surgery with radiation therapy increases your cat's chance for survival. So far, chemotherapy has not been as effective as radiation.

If you can afford it, have your veterinarian make contact with a major veterinary center where a specialist is located . This should be done as soon as the diagnosis is confirmed through biopsy, to give your pet the greatest chance for survival. If you can not afford that approach, find a local veterinarian who is up-to-date on this type of surgery because if the tumor is removed similarly to how other superficial tumors are removed, it will undoubtedly reoccur quickly.