Every few weeks, Mauri and his wife Rita make their way from Waco to Fort Worth where Mauri undergoes chemotherapy.
They enter the medical facility and greet the receptionists, then wait for the doctor to arrive. As Mauri gets taken out of the room for his treatment, Rita becomes anxious.
鈥淲hen they knock him out, you know he鈥檚 kind of drunk,鈥� says Mauri鈥檚 doctor, Carlos Rodriguez. 鈥淗e鈥檚 walking around with his little flippers down and he鈥檚 like a tragic old man. When we take him away Rita鈥檚 incensed. There鈥檚 drama and squawking.鈥�
Mauri and Rita are penguins, and they鈥檝e traveled from the Cameron Park Zoo to the Veterinary Specialists of North Texas for an experimental melanoma treatment intended for humans.
The two penguins are what鈥檚 known as a bonded pair, whose chicks and grand-chicks live with them at the Cameron Park Zoo. Rita鈥檚 19 years old and Mauri鈥檚 30.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a bit of a May-December affair, but they鈥檙e birds, so it鈥檚 whatever,鈥� Rodriguez laughs. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e in love. Who are we to stop them?鈥�
Mauri and other members of his colony were transferred from the Fort Worth Zoo when Cameron Park opened its new penguin exhibit. Just before that transfer, Fort Worth zookeepers identified his melanoma.
They arranged for Rodriguez to provide Mauri鈥檚 care after he identified the experimental new chemotherapy as a possible treatment for the bird.
The penguins travel to help reduce the stress of being separated and Rita is a fantastic partner. She鈥檚 protective, and while she doesn鈥檛 like her mate being sedated, she displays behavior indicative of a healthy bond.
Once the birds are situated in the exam room, the penguins are released to explore. After a few failed attempts at getting his weight, the team decides to sedate Mauri before taking his vitals and measuring the growth.
Rodriguez is excited: Mauri鈥檚 gained some weight since his last visit.
Rita is less amused: She circles a now-fully sedated Mauri and displays protective behavior. When he鈥檚 carried from the exam room to the procedure room, she calls out for him in deep brays.
One of the birds鈥� keepers stays behind to console her.
A little bit of paperwork later, and it鈥檚 time for Mauri鈥檚 chemotherapy to begin.
He鈥檚 receiving a medication developed by . The company鈥檚 CEO, Manijeh Goldberg, developed PRV-PETRA to treat cancer in humans. The developers tout the medication as being tough on cancer, but easy on patients.
While the chemotherapy is awaiting FDA approval for use in humans, Rodriguez saw an opportunity to try the medication in animals.
Mauri was the perfect candidate.
鈥淪o far, his response has been amazing,鈥� he said. 鈥淗is success on the drug could lead the medication to be used in more animal species because it does such a good job of attacking the cancer while leaving all the healthy systems more or less alone.鈥�
The side effects are minimal, too.
鈥淲ithin a day he鈥檚 back to normal. He spends the rest of his day a little groggy but he鈥檚 ready for fish the next morning,鈥� says James Kusmierczyk, the Zoo鈥檚 staff veterinarian.
Because the medication is experimental, the cost is considerably defrayed and the vets are treating Mauri at a reduced price.
Rodriguez prepares a syringe with chemotherapy and injects the medicine into Mauri鈥檚 beak. Kusmierczyk listens closely to Mauri鈥檚 breathing to ensure he鈥檚 not becoming too congested.
He steps back as Mauri regurgitates a slimy, neon-green mixture of bile and saline. The vet team places a suction down Maui鈥檚 throat to clear his airways before continuing to slowly inject the medication.
Once he鈥檚 finished the vile, Dr. Rodriguez places a patch over Mauri鈥檚 beak and applies saline to activate additional medication. Ten minutes later, the medication penetrates Mauri鈥檚 melanoma.
Kusmierczyk flips Mauri onto his back exposing a white underbelly that shines under the fluorescent lights.
鈥淟ook at him laid out like that,鈥� Rodriguez says. 鈥淎 gentleman of leisure.鈥�
After a patch of feathers along Mauri鈥檚 belly is flushed with saline, he鈥檚 injected with a melanoma vaccine and a tiny, insulin syringe of reversal medications starts to wake him up.
Kusmierczyk wraps Mauri in a towel, making a 鈥渂ird-rito鈥� to keep Mauri calm as he gains consciousness.
Back in the exam room, Rita waddles to Mauri, looks him over and assesses her mate鈥檚 condition. Once he can stand, Rita herds him under an exam chair. In the wild, African penguins seek shelter in bushes and burrows when they sense they are vulnerable. Once she鈥檚 content with Mauri鈥檚 positioning, she stands in front of him looking between her mate and the vet team.
Within a few minutes, Rita, satisfied with Mauri鈥檚 condition, leads him out towards the caretaker. Once their carrier鈥檚 open, they waddle right in and begin nesting.
In a few weeks, they鈥檒l do it all over again.
鈥淢auri鈥檚 on treatment three of four today,鈥� Rodriguez says. 鈥淎fter that, we鈥檒l assess next steps. But we鈥檙e happy so far.鈥�
Now that Marui鈥檚 on the road to recovery, the zoo hopes his story will inspire humans to be proactive in their health care. While Mauri鈥檚 melanoma wasn鈥檛 caused by the sun, the Zoo wants to use him as an ambassador animal to encourage humans to check their skin regularly and use sun protection.
When looking for the warning signs of melanoma, the Skin Cancer Foundation suggests using the ABCDE method: New areas of pigmentation should be assessed for Asymmetry, uneven Borders, Color changes, growing Diameter and Elevation from the surrounding skin. Any changes should be documented and reported to a dermatologist for further evaluation.
It will be a few more months before the specifics of Mauri鈥檚 prognosis are clear, but the team at VSNT is hopeful he has many more years with Rita ahead of him.
