A dog given just six months to live has been saved by a £39,000 pioneering stem cell transplant.
Vet Serena Gannon-Lodge and her husband Andrew were devastated when cocker spaniel Millie was diagnosed with lymphoma.
The British couple, who recently moved from London to San Francisco, were desperate to find a cure for their six-year-old pet.
As the dog went through four months of chemotherapy her owners, both 32, discovered the pioneering work of the North Carolina State Veterinary Hospital – the only place in the world to perform stem cell transplants on dogs.
And after the couple put nearly £15,000 of their savings towards experimental surgery – which involved flying Millie’s mum Coco over from the UK – their beloved pet is now in remission.
Serena said: “Millie means everything to us. We would sell everything we have for her to be happy.
“We had been in America for less than a year and we have been saving for a house, so we had the money.
“We used our savings to pay for Millie’s treatment, which we would do any day of the week to make sure she has the best chance to live.
"This whole five months has been an emotional rollercoaster – but she had to go through it to be here today.
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“It’s been very tough and emotionally draining. But we were so happy to have her home for Christmas and she has been straight back to her normal self.
“She has to have regular check-ups to make sure the cancer is staying at bay, and we are just taking it day by day. But we have our best friend back.”
The treatment, following Millie’s diagnosis in July, involved taking healthy cells from the dog’s mum Coco and injecting them into her.
Coco is the first British dog to donate stem cells in this way, with Millie only the 26th pooch globally to receive stem cells using the treatment.
Serena said: “Being a vet, I see cancer in animals on a weekly basis and I knew lymphoma was responsive to chemotherapy.
"But even with chemotherapy she was given a life expectancy of just six to nine months.
“We knew we had to do everything we could so we started researching stem cell transplants, the only option that would give her back a normal life expectancy.”
They contacted Coco’s owner Robert Alcock and straight away he said he would get her tested and contact owners of other puppies from Millie’s litter.
Serena said: “When Coco came back as a full match we were overwhelmed and paid to fly them both over here as soon as they could.”
Using their savings for a house, the couple were able to book all the necessary flights and contribute towards the £39,000 procedure – using insurance to fund the rest.
Robert took Coco 4,000 miles from his home in Darwen, Lancs, to North Carolina.
He said: “When Serena and Andrew asked me if I would get Coco tested and then fly out, I didn’t even hesitate to agree.
“I would do the same for Coco if she was in this situation. A dog is part of your family.
“It only seemed right that I let Coco save her own daughter and I’m so happy to see Millie, reunited with Serena and Andrew, happy and healthy again.”
Andrew added: “I feel that Millie is Serena’s soulmate, the bond they have is so loving I can’t imagine the two of them being apart.
“Both of us would do anything for Millie.”
