Dr. Irene Vazquez, was born and raised in the beautiful island of Puerto Rico. With her hometown, family, and friends only a plane ride away, she is very excited to be joining us in sunny South Florida and to be opening up our new Oncology Service at VCA Hollywood Animal Hospital. 

Dr. Vazquez attained her veterinary degree at Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine in St. Kitts and Nevis, where she had the opportunity to live for 3 years. During her last year of veterinary school, she developed a special interest and passion for dogs and cats with cancer and decided she wanted to become a veterinary oncologist. 

After graduating veterinary school in 2015, she moved to Los Angeles and completed a 1-year small animal rotating internship at VCA West Los Angeles Animal Hospital. She then moved to Auburn Alabama, where she completed a 3-year residency program in Small Animal Medical Oncology at Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2019. During her time at Auburn, she also attained a master's degree in Biomedical Sciences. 

Dr. Vazquez passed her oncology boards in 2019 and is currently working on her first author publication, which involves the research and use of a human chemotherapy drug for dogs with certain types of lymphomas and leukemias. For Dr. Vazquez, the most important thing in dogs and cats after a diagnosis of cancer is treatment focused on improvement of their quality of life.

During her free time, Dr. Vazquez enjoys spending time with her husband Emilio and their 2 dogs, Felipe, a middle-aged Red Heeler mix, and Junior, an older Weimaraner. She also enjoys face-timing her mom, cooking, going to the beach, and relaxing at home with her pups while watching the Housewives on Bravo, her guilty pleasure TV show! 

Years in Practice: 7

Education:  Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, 2015, DVM, MS, DACVIM (Oncology)

Dr. Vazquez is fluent in both Spanish and English.