As you may already know, we are HUGE fans of HT Vista as it helped us act quickly and save our dog, Puggy’s life. We used a HT Vista scanner a few months ago which helped us understand the severity of Puggy’s growths which led to a swift diagnosis and successful treatments of two mast cell tumours.

After all this worry, you can only imagine how anxious I became when I discovered a few lumps which appeared quite quickly on my other pooch’s chest. Little Pops is a senior rescue dachshund, and at almost 13 years old, I’m always extra cautious to put her through any painful or unnecessary treatments.

Following on from the Puggy’s success story, we jumped at the chance for Pops to have a HT Vista scan to see if there was anything sinister that required further testing.
In case you don’t already know, HT vista is a revolutionary cancer screening device that can be performed by vets and vet nurses to give immediate peace of mind, or to alert owners if further investigation is recommended. The “wait and see” approach terrifies me, especially with an older dog, so I decided to get the insight I needed to do what is best for Pops asap.
The HT Vista uses heat diffusion imaging technology (HDI) to determine if a mass is most likely benign or requires further investigation. The whole experience is so quick, easy and painless and Pops took it all in her stride!

A vet or vet nurse will perform the scan with owners present and starts out by shaving a small patch of fur around the lumps and bumps in question. Then in just 40 second the scanner will gently heat the lump by 6 degrees and leave it to cool naturally. The device then monitors the thermal activity and any special features of the tissue. It’s entirely pain free, stress free and non-invasive and I cannot explain the relief I felt when the grading appeared on screen!

I’m thrilled to report that Pops lumps and bumps all came back with the highest HDI score of 10, which represents a probability of 99% that the lump is benign, meaning they are highly unlikely to be cancer related and at her age, its probably just fatty lumps!

Thankfully Pops’ story is far less complex than Puggy’s but being able to spot any abnormal lumps early and understand what they are, can save your dog’s life, and as we learned in Puggy’s case early detection can make all the difference!

Luckily Pops does not require any further testing. No painful biopsies or scary vet visits, she can continue living her senior years carefree, and as her dedicated owner, I get peace of mind and no more anxiety.

Lumps and bumps are so common in dogs, especially as they get older, so it’s vital you investigate as early as possible. They are often no cause for concern but take it from an owner who has experienced results at both ends of the scale, that knowledge is power whether it is good or bad news!

Catching cancer early gives us owners the freedom and insight to arrange treatment to remove and/or stop cancer spreading.

We will be forever thankful to HT Vista and our incredible team of vets for everything they have done for my pack, and I cannot recommend them enough.

Speak to your vet about HT Vista if you have any concerns about lumps on your pet. If they don’t have a machine, make them aware as we believe every vet practice would benefit from this incredible tech!