PetCure Oncology says it has now treated 10,000 pets

PetCure Oncology says it has crossed a notable benchmark in veterinary cancer care: 10,000 pets treated with radiation therapy since the company launched in 2015. In a January 7, 2026 milestone article, the company said the achievement reflects a decade-long push to move advanced radiation options, especially stereotactic radiation, beyond academic hospitals and into a broader referral network serving general practice and specialty clinicians. (petcureoncology.com)

That framing fits the company’s own history. In a 2024 milestone announcement, PetCure said it had treated more than 8,000 pets and described stereotactic radiation therapy as a way to compress treatment from the historical 15 to 20 sessions down to one to three sessions for many patients. At that time, the company said it was supporting 11 programs nationwide; by early 2026, its public-facing milestone article described eight treatment centers nationwide, suggesting some evolution in how it counts physical centers versus affiliated programs. (petcureoncology.com)

The core claim is access. PetCure says that when it started, stereotactic radiation in veterinary medicine was largely limited to academic institutions and unevenly available by geography. Its current model combines physical treatment sites, centralized specialist oversight, and telehealth-enabled referral support. According to the January 2026 article, the network now includes eight centers, 12 board-certified oncologists, and eight supervising veterinarians. The company also says every treatment plan is overseen and reviewed by two board-certified radiation oncologists, underscoring its emphasis on standardization and protocol-driven care. (petcureoncology.com)

The broader specialty landscape helps explain why that matters. A 2023 review of veterinary radiation oncology reported that the American College of Veterinary Radiology had 129 active radiation oncology diplomates and 35 residents in 2022, while the Veterinary Cancer Society reported more than 105 veterinary radiation facilities. The same review described radiosurgery as a standard of practice for reducing anesthesia events and hospitalization time, and noted that private cancer centers in the U.S. have increasingly added radiation services as equipment and expertise have matured. In other words, PetCure’s milestone sits within a larger structural shift, but also highlights how concentrated this expertise still is. (pdfs.semanticscholar.org)

PetCure’s leadership has been explicit about where it sees the field heading. In a 2025 trends piece, Chief Medical Officer Neal Mauldin pointed to a “new era of mobile radiation therapy,” while in other company materials he has emphasized that veterinary oncology increasingly offers options that weren’t available five or 10 years ago, including care that can be curative in some cases and palliative in others. Separately, PetCure and Thrive announced a partnership with Empyrean Medical Systems in late 2025 to deploy the Sirius stereotactic radiation platform in the Seattle market, another sign that network expansion is being tied to newer delivery systems and broader regional coverage. (petcureoncology.com)

Why it matters: For veterinary professionals, this story is really about referral practicality. Radiation oncology has long been constrained by geography, workforce, equipment costs, and the logistics of repeated anesthetic events. If more patients can complete treatment in one to three sessions, and if primary care teams can access specialist input through telehealth and structured referral pathways, that can make oncology conversations more actionable for pet parents. It may also keep the referring veterinarian more connected to the case, rather than handing off care entirely to an academic center. At the same time, this remains a company-reported milestone, not an independent outcomes analysis, so clinicians will still want to separate access claims from published efficacy, case selection, cost, and long-term follow-up data. (petcureoncology.com)

There are also signs that radiation therapy in companion animals is broadening beyond classic oncology indications. PetCure and outside veterinary nursing coverage have highlighted low-dose radiation therapy for some benign or inflammatory conditions, although that use remains less widely advertised and likely less uniformly available than cancer-directed treatment. For practices, that suggests radiation referral networks may become more relevant across a wider set of cases, even as oncology remains the main driver. (todaysveterinarynurse.com)

What to watch: The next question is whether PetCure’s 10,000-patient milestone translates into further geographic expansion, more formal data publication, or deeper integration with Thrive’s hospital network. Watch for additional center launches, technology rollouts, and any peer-reviewed outcomes or protocol updates that help veterinarians judge not just access, but comparative value for specific tumor types and patient populations. (petcureoncology.com)