Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Skin tumors in Zimbabwe dogs and how age and sex affect them
By Mukaratirwa, S et al.·Published in Journal of the South African Veterinary Association·2005·Department of Paraclinical Veterinary Studies·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Canine cutaneous neoplasms: prevalence and influence of age, sex and site on the presence and potential malignancy of cutaneous neoplasms in dogs from Zimbabwe.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study of 900 dogs in Zimbabwe with skin lumps found that 60% had tumors, with the most common types being mast cell tumors and squamous cell carcinomas. The research showed that certain tumors were more likely to occur in specific areas of the body, such as epithelial tumors on the trunk. Interestingly, the age and sex of the dogs did not significantly affect the likelihood of developing these tumors. If your dog has a skin lump, it's important to have it checked by a vet, as early diagnosis can lead to better treatment options.
People also search for: dog skin lump treatment · mast cell tumor in dogs · squamous cell carcinoma in dogs
Abstract
Histopathological examination was performed on cutaneous biopsies from 900 dogs with skin lesions from Zimbabwe, collected from 1996 to 2000. Clinical data were collected from medical records. Sixty per cent (540/900) of the cases were tumours and 40% (360/900) were non-neoplastic inflammatory or degenerative diseases. Thirty different histological types of tumour were diagnosed. The prevalence of epithelial, mesenchymal, lymphohistiocytic and melanocytic tumours was 39.4%, 44.4%, 7.4% and 8.7%, respectively. The 10 most common tumours, comprising 73.7% of all cutaneous neoplasms, were mast cell tumours, squamous cell carcinomas, perianal gland adenomas, lymphomas, benign melanomas, haemangiosarcomas, sebaceous gland adenomas, fibrosarcomas, lipomas and malignant melanomas. The prevalence of various neoplasms, age of affected dogs and sites of occurrence were similar to surveys in other countries, except that in Zimbabwe there was a greater prevalence of lymphomas and of tumours associated with increased exposure to ultraviolet light (squamous cell carcinomas, haemangiosarcomas and melanomas). For all classes of tumours the sex of the dog did not have any significant influence on the likelihood of developing a tumour. For a dog diagnosed with a tumour located on the trunk, the tumour was significantly more likely to be an epithelial tumour than a non-epithelial tumour The occurrence of melanocytic tumours on the trunk was significantly lower than at other sites. Lymphohistiocytic tumours were 10 times more likely to occur at multiple locations as opposed to single locations.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16108522/