Texas A&M Oncology Team Helps Top Police K-9 Overcome Cancer

Story by Ainsley Treesh, VMBS Marketing & Communications

May 6, 2025

Texas DPS handler makes weekly two-hour trips for K-9 partner’s cancer treatment.

Police K-9 Athena and her handler Josh Perkins have been an unstoppable pair in their service to the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS); since they began working together, the two have broken several records across the state and received multiple awards.

While Athena’s loyalty to her job never wavered, she faced a new challenge when she was diagnosed with lymphoma as she and Perkins were concluding their first year together.

Having heard from other DPS canine handlers about positive experiences at the Texas A&M Small Animal Teaching Hospital (SATH), Perkins turned to the SATH’s Oncology Service for Athena’s treatment, where she fought hard to beat the cancer while still maintaining her DPS duties.

Forming A New Team

Perkins and Athena met in September 2022, when, after working at the DPS for five years, Perkins decided to transition into a full-time drug interdiction role; a specialized unit that spends time monitoring the major interstate corridors in search of illegal drug activity and assisting other federal agencies.

Both new to their roles, they learned together during the three-month canine training program, and after graduating, the pair found great success.

“We received Top 10 Canine Handler of the Year and made the most drug and illegal currency seizures as a canine team in 2024,” Perkins said. “We also received numerous awards, including the Director’s Citation for our criminal interdiction efforts, which is the second-highest award in the DPS.”

Their successful partnership in the field also carried over at home.

“At home, she is calm and doesn’t have a care in the world,” Perkins said. “She has high drive at work, but off duty, she is super nice and doesn’t want to hurt anybody. She has such a goofy personality.”

A Bump In The Road

One evening in October 2024, Perkins was petting Athena and noticed a lump on her neck. He wasn’t sure whether it was a new spot, so he monitored it over the next few days.

When the lump began to swell rapidly, Perkins knew it was a serious concern, so he took Athena to their local veterinarian, who suspected that she had lymphoma — a form of cancer that affects the lymph nodes and immune system. To confirm the diagnosis, Athena needed to be seen by a specialist, so they were referred to the SATH oncology team for a consultation.

Several days before their appointment at the SATH, Athena’s conditions began to worsen, with Perkins noticing Athena’s breathing was labored.

“She was panting as if she was cooling down from exercise,” Perkins said. “We had been in the office that day doing paperwork, so when her breathing was labored, I knew something was wrong.”

The next morning, Perkins made the two-hour drive from Waco to College Station for an emergency visit. After arriving, Athena received a full exam and diagnostics, confirming her lymphoma diagnosis.

“I was devastated,” Perkins said. “I thought this was the end, and it was hard because we were finally meshed and were having great success. It felt like we just hit a brick wall.”

However, just like Perkins, the SATH oncology team wasn’t going to give up on Athena.

“Lymphoma is generally considered a terminal disease,” said Jaci Christensen, the oncology veterinary technician supervisor. “It is super important that we begin treatment immediately to induce a remission, so we were able to start treatment the day of her ER visit.

“Athena received the gold-standard chemotherapy treatment for lymphoma,” Christensen said. “Her protocol consisted of 20 weeks of chemotherapy treatments.”

Each of those 20 weeks, Perkins drove the two hours to College Station to bring Athena to her appointments, prioritizing her health above everything.

“It was strenuous to keep up with her treatment on top of work and everything else I had going on,” Perkins said. “There were things I didn’t want to cancel, but I did in the interest of her health.”

As the weeks progressed, the oncology team began to see Athena respond to the treatment.

“Within about three weeks, she was in remission, which is great,” Christensen said.

Throughout her treatment, Athena’s spirits remained high. She was able to continue working, excelling during her weekly proficiency exams conducted by the DPS and continued to make drug seizures.  

“She had no side effects, which isn’t very common,” Perkins said. “She took it head-on and didn’t miss a beat at work. She had her off days, but overall, we were super blessed that she remained healthy.”

Back and Better Than Ever

Following the completion of her first round of treatment, Athena began radiation therapy.

“Radiation therapy is a local treatment in which radiation is directed at specific areas of the body where cancer is present,” Christensen said. “Some studies have suggested prolonged survival times when radiation is used in conjunction with chemotherapy in lymphoma patients, which is why we recommended both treatments for Athena.

“Our goal with Athena is to achieve the best outcome possible so that she can continue doing what she loves for as long as she is able,” she added.

Since completing radiation therapy, Athena has come out of remission and started another round of chemotherapy treatment.

“She is doing great and continues to BTHO cancer,” Christensen said.

Perkins is incredibly grateful for the compassionate care Athena has received at the SATH.

“I just want to thank everyone for their love and support,” Perkins said. “It feels like family. For them, it’s not just a service; it’s a personal relationship. Everyone treats everyone like family, not just a business.”

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For more information about the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, please visit our website at vetmed.tamu.edu or join us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Contact Information: Jennifer Gauntt, Director of VMBS Communications, Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, jgauntt@cvm.tamu.edu, 979-862-4216

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