DAYTON, Ohio, Jan. 16 /PRNewswire/ -- Through state-of-the-art MRI technology, veterinarians from Iams Pet Food, the University of Pennsylvania, and the American Kennel Club Canine Health Foundation have tracked the physical changes of 10 first responders of the 9/11 terrorist attacks for the past five years. At the conclusion of the study today, the canines were given a clean bill of health. No signs of nasal carcinoma have been detected that can be directly linked to their work on or after the 9/11 attacks.
"The dogs who remain in the study appear to be healthy and free of any nasal conditions," said Dr. Amy Dicke, a technical services veterinarian for Iams Pet Food who has monitored the health of the study participants for the past five years. "While we have lost some of our hero dogs to old age and non-related health issues, the canine participants involved in our study have shown no signs of cancerous tumors that can be directly related to their work at 9/11 or other search and rescue missions."
With decades of combined experience, the study participants have traveled the world to participate in search and rescue missions following natural and manmade disasters such as Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the Columbia Space Shuttle explosion, train derailments, factory explosions and tornadoes. Like all search and rescue missions, the deployment after the 9/11 attacks required the dogs to utilize their keen sense of smell to identify the bodies of victims. It is this sense of smell that makes these specially trained dogs a crucial component of life-saving rescue missions, but it also makes it impossible for them to wear protective gear such as gas masks and clean air oxygen filtrates during missions, putting them at especially great risk of exposure to potentially hazardous carcinogens and fine particles of soot and debris.
"During our work at Ground Zero, the other handlers and I were given knee pads, elbow pads, face masks and other equipment to protect our safety in those horrible conditions," said Mary Flood, a FEMA handler whose dog 'Jake,' a 12-year-old Labrador retriever, participated in the study. "The dogs, however, wore no protective gear, so I'm thankful that 'Jake' had the chance to participate in this study. It's just been terrific knowing that my partner is cared for."
The high-tech, detailed MRI scans enable researchers to peer into the dogs' brains, sinus cavities, nasal passages, glands and other soft tissue to detect disease that may have developed. Once available only to humans, MRI is now a valuable diagnostic tool used by veterinarians from coast to coast via Iams Pet Imaging Centers located in Redwood City, Calif., Vienna, Va., and Raleigh, N.C. The technology allows veterinarians to more accurately determine the cause and location of diseases such as cancer while avoiding invasive exploratory surgery in working dogs, like the ones participating in the study, as well as companion animals. Based on more than 10,000 case referrals, Iams Pet Imaging Centers are the world leader in pet MRI scans.
About P&G Pet Care
About P&G
Iams
