Novel approaches to the diagnosis and treatment of brain tumours, and other investigations in clinical neurology

The primary goal of this thesis is to report results of a veterinary clinician-scientist’s career in the field of brain tumor research. The overarching goal of the research was to establish spontaneous canine gliomas as a model for brain tumor research in humans, and to reduce the translational gap between pre-clinical studies in mice, and human clinical trials. An ideal pre-clinical model for human brain tumour research would be a tumour that: (1) arises spontaneously; (2) grows intra-parenchymally; (3) is uniformly and rapidly fatal; (4) is capable of growing in vitro; (5) is transplantable both intracranially and subcutaneously in syngeneic animals; (6) correlates with the therapeutic sensitivities of its human counterparts; (7) occurs in a species that is genetically out-bred; and (8) occurs in a large animal with immune system intact. Dogs with a naturally-occurring brain tumour offer an opportunity to apply a “comparative” perspective, with translational applications, for new diagnostic, drug and other therapeutic trials. Results of research presented in this thesis support the premise that dogs with a spontaneous glioma represent a formidable large animal pre-clinical model for human brain tumour investigations. In translational medicine, clinician-scientists are the essential conduit between laboratory and clinic. The secondary goal of this thesis is to present research advances in the areas of neuromuscular disorders, equine electroencephalography, equine anaesthesia, and experimental intraoperative radiation therapy, with a view to emphasizing the role of the veterinary clinician-scientist in the advancement of these emerging areas