Ep 97: Canine Cancer Care With Inge Breathnach AKA The Oncology RVN

In this special episode of Veterinary Ramblings, we delve into a pressing issue currently affecting the veterinary industry. Our guest, Louise Buckley, takes centre stage as she shares her unique perspective on the treatment of dogs and their owners in relation to Brucella Canis.

Louise, a former registered veterinary nurse, made the bold decision to remove herself from the Register of Veterinary Nurses held by the RCVS as a protest against the profession's approach to this matter. Driven by her unwavering commitment to animal welfare, Louise believes that she can make a more significant impact by voicing her concerns freely outside the boundaries of the professional code of conduct.

During our enlightening conversation, Louise reveals her personal journey and the factors that led her to take this unprecedented step. Together, we explore the complex nuances surrounding Brucella Canis and the challenges faced by affected dogs and their owners. It's an opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of this critical issue from someone who has been directly involved.

We would like to emphasize the importance of compassion and open dialogue within the veterinary community. We acknowledge the divisive nature of this topic and encourage listeners to engage in constructive conversations rather than engage in heated arguments. While Louise's views are her own and may not necessarily reflect those of the podcast, we firmly believe in providing a fair and impartial platform for individuals to share their stories.

Join us as we shed light on the Brucella Canis crisis and the passionate voices advocating for change. Together, let's foster a community that prioritizes the well-being of animals and works towards a better future in veterinary care.
To follow Louise's story, head over to 'Brucella Canis Former RVN resigned under protest' on Facebook.
Please note: Louise has brought to our attention that a further explanation of positive predictive value (PPV) is required to clarify what this means for the dogs involved as many people will not realise what a PPV is or what it means for interpreting the test.
PPV is in relation to dogs that have tested positive already, rather than dogs that have not yet been tested. It relates to the question that veterinary professionals need to ask once they have a dog with a positive result in front of them:
"Given that this dog has tested positive, what is the probability that this is a true positive?"
The answer is the PPV of the test in this situation and the value of the PPV interacts with both the specificity of the disease and with the prevalence of the disease among the population of interest.
In the case of the Dogs Trust data presented in this presentation, the answer is that if the specificity is 99% (the APHA claim this figure for their parallel testing SAT and iELISA combined approach), and the prevalence of Brucella Canis is 1% (based on the Dogs Trust data and corrected to reflect excess cases above the expected rate of false positives), roughly 1 in 2 dogs will be a true positive, and 1 in 2 dogs will be a false positive.
This is very different to a claim that one in two UNTESTED dogs will test positive and important that listeners appreciate this.