Objective: To evaluate the antitumor and toxic effects of treatment with doxorubicin combined with piroxicam or doxorubicin alone for multicentric lymphoma in dogs.
Design: Nonrandomized clinical trial.
Animals: 75 dogs with multicentric lymphoma.
Procedure: 33 dogs were treated with doxorubicin (30 mg/m2, IV, q 21 d, for 3 doses) and piroxicam (0.3 mg/kg [0.14 mg/lb], PO, q 24 h); results were compared with a historical control group of 42 dogs treated with doxorubicin (30 mg/M2, IV, q 21 d, for 3 doses) alone. Results-The percentages of dogs that had remission with doxorubicin-piroxicam treatment (79%) or doxorubicin treatment alone (74%) were not significantly different. Median duration of first remission was 130 days with doxorubicin-piroxicam and 147 days with doxorubicin alone; these values were not significantly different. Severe toxicosis was observed in 22% of dogs treated with doxorubicin-piroxicam and 17% of dogs treated with doxorubicin alone.
Conclusions and clinical relevance: Both treatment protocols were efficacious and well tolerated. The doxorubicin-piroxicam treatment was no more effective regarding response rate, remission duration, or survival duration, compared with the control group treated with doxorubicin alone.