If approved after your consultation with your Petspan veterinarian, it takes two days for the pharmacy to process the medication and another two to three days for it to ship. Note that the pharmacy is closed on weekends, which can extend the processing and shipping times. When your order ships, you will receive a tracking link.

If you need to provide the Post Office with specific delivery instructions, please go to their website (usps.com) and click Quick Tools -> Track a Package. There is a section called "How do I leave delivery instructions."

We currently accept major credit cards such as Mastercard, Visa, and American Express.

Once you sign up for your pet’s consultation, your card will be charged for the cost of the virtual visit. If during the visit your pet is determined to be a good candidate for rapamycin treatment, you will then be billed for the medication and it will be sent to the pharmacy to be filled and shipped. You will continue to be billed based on your subscription duration unless you make a change in your plan. Your prescription will be auto renewed based on your subscription duration.

You can cancel or pause your subscription at anytime by logging into your pet’s patient portal and navigating to your Subscriptions. For any additional questions, please message us in the application or email us at support@mypetspan.com.

The Rapamycin Protocol is a fully comprehensive and personalized treatment plan guided by your Petspan veterinarian and based on the most recently published studies in dogs and cats.

• Medical review by a US-based, licensed veterinarian. Petspan veterinarians analyze your pet’s medical history and examination findings to prescribe personalized health recommendations. If your veterinarian deems the medication appropriate for your pet, you will be receive a recommended treatment plan for your pet, explaining the benefits and what to expect. You will need to meet with your Petspan veterinarian via a virtual video consultation every 6 months to continue the medication, but we recommend messaging your pet’s care team monthly to track progress and response - or sooner if you have any concerns.
• Prescriptions delivered to your door. Our US-based pharmacies, which are LegitScript-certified, handle the direct shipment of your pet’s medication to your doorstep. We prioritize selecting medications with the highest bioavailability to maximize their effectiveness.

Regular diagnostic testing including basic blood and urine tests are recommended prior to starting treatment, at 3 months after initiating treatment, and every 6 months thereafter as long as your pet is on the medication. We recommend uploading these results to your pet’s patient portal for Petspan care team review. This allows your Petspan veterinarian to track improvements in your pet’s health indicators and monitor for any side effects. These tests can be done with your regular veterinarian or via a mobile veterinary service in your area.

Upon thorough medical review and screening, should your pet be deemed suitable for the Petspan Rapamycin Protocol, administration of Rapamycin will occur just once a week. For instance, should your pet’s current weekly dosage be 3 mg, and you're given 1 mg pills, you'll give all three pills on a single day, as opposed to distributing them over the week.

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The reason for this methodology stems from the cyclical nature of the benefits Rapamycin offers for anti-aging. Unlike transplant patients who take Rapamycin daily, the longevity benefits are drawn from the intermittent inhibition of mTOR. The therapeutic benefit of Rapamycin is derived from pulsated inhibition of mTOR, avoiding continuous inhibition. This approach prevents bloodstream concentrations of rapamycin that could inhibit mTOR-Complex 2, leading to immune suppression, which we aim to evade.

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By adhering to a weekly dosage, we sidestep the immunosuppressive side effects of Rapamycin. We strive to administer Rapamycin in a manner that leverages the mTOR inhibitory benefits, such as stimulating autophagy, in cycles, and then returning to baseline mTOR activity.

The risk of cancer is related to daily dosing for transplant patients, whereas our approach involves intermittent dosing every 7 days to avoid immune suppression. This distinction has varying implications for cancer. Rapamycin inhibits mTOR, exhibiting anti-cancer properties by preventing cell proliferation and inflammatory conditions conducive to cancer. Daily dosing may suppress the immune system, while our low-dose cyclical dosing enhances immune function, potentially contributing to rapamycin's anti-cancer benefits. For more information about rapamycin, immune health, and cancer, please visit our Petspan blog to access dedicated articles.

At the Petspan protocol dose and frequency, multiple species-specific studies have found no statistically significant adverse effects of the medication when compared with placebo.

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At higher doses and/or with chronic (i.e. daily) use, the following rare side effects have been reported:

• Decreases in red and white blood cells (thrombocytopenia, anemia, leukopenia)
• Increases in fats in the blood (hyperlipidemia)
• Impaired wound healing
• Kidney damage
• Altered insulin sensitivity

Most of the effects noted have been mild and reversible with discontinuation of the medication. However, this is the reason your Petspan care team recommends baseline and recheck blood testing to address any changes early. If you note signs of possible skin infection - or if your pet becomes acutely ill - you should see your regular veterinarian promptly and advise them of all medications your pet takes, including rapamycin.