Pet owners increasingly filing claims for lymphoma treatment

As cancers become more and more treatable among the family's pets, claims made for cancer treatment from pet insurance companies are going up, according to an article in Seattle PI.

The article notes that while claims for cancer such as melanoma, carcinomas, mast cell tumors and unspecified masses have gone up considerably over last year, one cancer's costs remain highest per incident: Lymphomas.

According to insurer Petplan, although claims for lymphoma treatments (which can range from radiotherapy to chemotherapy to bone marrow transplantations) are only up 40% from the previous year (compared to melanomas, the claims of which are up 837% over last year), these have the highest per-policy cost, averaging about $2,700, with the highest cost topping $18,000.

This does not mean lymphoma incidence is up, rather it means that more pet owners are insuring their animals against cancerous conditions. Lymphoma remains the most commonly diagnosed cancer in canines, and among the most frequently claimed-for health condition among pets.

Source: Seattle PI