A UK zoo on Friday has disclosed curing a cancer-stricken python named after Hollywood star Jodie Foster
The animal becomes the first snake to receive an innovative treatment combining surgery and electrochemotherapy (ECT).
Chester Zoo, in northwest England, said the 4.5 metre (15-foot) reticulated python had fully recovered after first undergoing surgery and then receiving ECT following the return of a cancerous tumour in her jawbone.
Animals are increasingly being treated for cancers with drugs and therapies once only used on humans.
Other creatures including a turtle and lizard have had ECT treatment previously, according to case reports posted on medical science databases.
But Chester Zoo’s veterinary team, who worked alongside University of Liverpool cancer specialists to adapt the pioneering treatment, believe it is a first for a snake.
“We were facing the possibility of losing her as the tumour made it more and more difficult for her to eat,” Chester Zoo vet Ian Ashpole said in a press release.
“So we worked with cancer specialists to see whether we could adapt electrochemotherapy for a snake. As far as we’re aware, this is the first time it’s ever been used in one.”
Zookeepers first became concerned when 23-year-old Jodie who has been at the zoo for two decades began eating less and spending more time inactive in her habitat.
Ok! Congrats Jodie!
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