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Peer-reviewed veterinary case report

Canine nodal marginal zone lymphoma signs and outcomes

By Cozzi, M et al.·Published in Veterinary and comparative oncology·2018·Department of Veterinary Medicine, Italy·View original on PubMed

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Original publication title: Canine nodal marginal zone lymphoma: Descriptive insight into the biological behaviour.

Species:
dog
LymphomaBehaviour & energyDogs

Plain-English summary

A group of dogs diagnosed with nodal marginal zone lymphoma (nMZL) showed signs of swollen lymph nodes and some were feeling unwell. All dogs had advanced disease and were treated with chemotherapy or a combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy. Unfortunately, the average time these dogs lived after treatment was about 259 days, which is considered poor despite the lymphoma being classified as indolent (slow-growing). The study highlights that while nMZL may seem less aggressive, it can still lead to serious health issues and the best treatment options are still being determined.

People also search for: dog swollen lymph nodes treatment · canine lymphoma prognosis · chemotherapy for dog lymphoma

Abstract

Canine nodal marginal zone lymphoma (nMZL) is classified as an indolent lymphoma. Such lymphomas are typified by low mitotic rate and slow clinical progression. While the clinical behaviour of canine splenic MZL has been described, characterized by an indolent course and a good prognosis following splenectomy, there are no studies specifically describing nMZL. The aim of this study was to describe the clinical features of and outcome for canine nMZL. Dogs with histologically confirmed nMZL undergoing a complete staging work-up (including blood analysis, flow cytometry [FC] on lymph node [LN], peripheral blood and bone marrow, imaging, histology and immunohistochemistry on a surgically removed peripheral LN) were retrospectively enrolled. Treatment consisted of chemotherapy or chemo-immunotherapy. Endpoints were response rate (RR), time to progression (TTP) and lymphoma-specific survival (LSS). A total of 35 cases were enrolled. At diagnosis, all dogs showed generalized lymphadenopathy. One-third was systemically unwell. All dogs had stage V disease; one-third also had extranodal involvement. The LN population was mainly composed of medium-sized CD21+ cells with scant resident normal lymphocytes. Histology revealed diffuse LN involvement, referring to "late-stage" MZL. Median TTP and LSS were 149 and 259 days, respectively. Increased LDH activity and substage b were significantly associated with a shorter LSS. Dogs with nMZL may show generalized lymphadenopathy and an advanced disease stage. Overall, the outcome is poor, despite the "indolent" designation. The best treatment option still needs to be defined.

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Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29205839/