A 23-year-old reticulated python named Jodie Foster is believed to have become the first snake in the world to receive a pioneering cancer treatment normally used on humans after developing a malignant tumour in her jaw.
The 15-foot (4.5-metre), 50kg python, which lives at Chester Zoo, underwent electrochemotherapy after surgery to remove the tumour failed to prevent it from returning.
Keepers first suspected something was wrong when Jodie began eating less and spending more time inactive in her habitat. She was subsequently diagnosed with a fibrosarcoma, a malignant tumour, in her jaw. The tumour was surgically removed but later returned and began invading her jawbone, putting her life at risk.
Months after undergoing electrochemotherapy, Jodie is eating normally and is “back to her usual bright and feisty self”, The Guardian reports.
Pythons can unhinge their jaws to swallow prey many times the size of their head. Zoo staff have observed that Jodie has continued to strike, grip and swallow food without difficulty since the procedure.
Cancer's Return Prompted Pioneering Treatment
Ian Ashpole, a veterinary officer at Chester Zoo, said: “When the tumour came back and started destroying part of her jawbone, we knew more surgery on its own probably wasn’t going to be enough.
“We were facing the possibility of losing her as the tumour made it more and more difficult for her to eat, 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.”
Jodie is so large that two operating tables had to be pushed together to accommodate her, creating a platform about the size of a double bed.
Her name dates back to her arrival at the zoo, when staff noticed that her paperwork carried the initials “JF”, shorthand for “juvenile female”.
Jodie was anaesthetised in her habitat before being carefully moved to the zoo's veterinary centre for the 90-minute procedure.
Ashpole first removed the tumourous mass and part of her diseased jawbone. Electrochemotherapy was then administered to target any remaining cancerous cells.
How Electrochemotherapy Works
The treatment combines the cancer drug bleomycin with carefully controlled electrical pulses delivered directly to the tumour site. The pulses temporarily make cancer cells more permeable, allowing the drug to enter them more effectively.
Jose Alvarez Picornell, of the University of Liverpool’s department of small animal clinical science, said: “Electrochemotherapy is an emerging treatment and this was the first time it had been used in a snake. The success of this treatment is a testament to the power of collaboration. By working closely with Ian, we were able to develop a plan that not only benefited Jodie Foster but will also contribute to the wider veterinary community.”
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Final Check Finds No Sign Of Cancer's Return
A final examination this week confirmed that Jodie remained free of any signs that the cancer had returned.
Picornell added: “We will be formally publishing details of the procedure so that veterinary colleagues around the world can learn from and build upon our approach. This has been a very special career highlight for me and a fantastic opportunity to expand the work we do within the department to support high-quality veterinary and translational research.”
