Pet Insurance Industry 2021 Results Are In: Huge Growth Continues, but Most Americans Still Aren’t Buying
The pet insurance industry is reporting today that the total number of insured cats and dogs in the U.S. for […]
Emily Brill
Posts by Emily Brill:
Pet insurer “AKC” from PetPartners touts coverage of pre-existing conditions
Welcome to TCR’s first edition of “Paws and Clauses.” The American Kennel Club is not the entity responsible for the […]
$599 Petco canine cancer test announces its scientific validation one year after press release, marketing campaign
California-based PetDx, owner of OncoK9 – “the liquid biopsy test for dogs -” has announced that there is now science […]
Maine becomes first state to pass pet insurance model law; other state legislatures continue to wait for NAIC
On April 7, Maine Governor Janet T. Mills (D) signed an unlikely piece of legislation: “An Act Regarding Pet Insurance.” […]
It’s National Dog Bite Prevention Week, but at least one victim dissents
Every year during the second week of April, the American Veterinary Medical Association produces National Dog Bite Prevention Week, a […]
Exclusive: Seresto ‘killer collars’ stories still uncorroborated by any veterinarian more than one year later, EPA concedes in statement
Over the past year, USA Today has published twelve stories snowballing from one original story whose underlying premise is that […]
USA Today writes another hit job on Seresto; ‘investigative’ report fails to seek comment; vets continue to be ignored
Just over a year ago, on March 2, 2021, USA Today, whose parent company Gannett became America’s largest newspaper publisher when it merged with Gatehouse in 2019, printed a thinly sourced story declaring one of America’s most popular pet products, Seresto flea and tick collars, to be killer collars. The story was castigated by veterinarians and other health professionals — including board-certified veterinary toxicologists we interviewed.
FDA announces injunction barring New Jersey raw pet food firm from operating
The FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine announced on Monday that New Jersey-based raw pet food manufacturer Bravo Packing, Inc., agreed to a court order barring the company from operating until further notice.
OncoK9 “Liquid Biopsy” cancer test company reveals widely publicized trials with BluePearl have been delayed
Chief medical officer and co-founder Dr. Andi Flory was there, and we asked her what would be recommended if an otherwise healthy dog tested “positive” for cancer according to OncoK9. Dr. Flory said that the next step would be to undergo a series of imaging and diagnostic tests. Following a presentation from PetDx’s Dr. Angela McCleary-Wheeler at the conference, she said when asked during a brief Q&A that the company’s recommendation would be to go on a “cancer hunt.”
Co-founder Dr. Daniel Grosu did not make himself available at the company booth for interviews and was nowhere to be found at the company’s presentations on Tuesday, March 8. Dr. Grosu also declined to comment when asked if he was comfortable with the term “cancer hunt.”
The Canine Review also asked Dr. Flory how things were progressing with the clinical trials announced earlier this year with BluePearl, a network of highly regarded veterinary specialty hospitals.
Dr. Flory said that the trials had not yet started due to “paperwork” delays. BluePearl co-founder Darryl Shaw did not respond to requests for comment or clarification regarding the status of the collaboration with PetDx, and PetDx’s Grosu has continued to decline all requests to comment. “That’s something we’re not allowed to talk about,” another PetDx staffer at the company’s booth told TCR when asked about the BluePearl collaboration. “But, is it still happening?”
“I think the best person to talk to about that would be Daniel [Grosu, who remained AWOL.]”
BluePearl aside, herein lies the main head-scratcher: A positive result on this test provides no information about what type of cancer might be lurking or its location. Thus, there’s no limit as far as scope for diagnostics; a veterinarian would still need to rule out every possibility and therefore test until there are no more tests.
Thus, given that the test does not narrow the scope, what’s the argument for using OncoK9 before using the diagnostics which you would need to use regardless to diagnose and/or rule out?
AVMA’s Salois departs in a hurry, ahead of scheduled appearances at Western Vet Conference updated
The AVMA’s veterinary economics director Matthew Salois is leaving his post to become president of the Veterinary Management Groups (VMG), a trade association for veterinary professionals.His announcement comes less than one week ahead of his in-person scheduled appearances at the Western Veterinary Conference in Las Vegas representing the AVMA:
Late Friday afternoon, AVMA spokeswoman Lisa Howard issued the following statement:
“Matt has accepted a new position as President of the Veterinary Study Groups, and we are very happy for him. Thursday was his last day, and he committed to fulfill his two presentations at WVC. Matt has done remarkable work at the AVMA and will be missed, but this is a wonderful opportunity for him. We’re so glad that his expertise will continue to benefit the veterinary profession.”