Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Clinical outcome in 23 dogs with exocrine pancreatic carcinoma.
- Journal:
- Veterinary and comparative oncology
- Year:
- 2021
- Authors:
- Pinard, Christopher J et al.
- Affiliation:
- Colorado State University Flint Animal Cancer Center · United States
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Exocrine pancreatic carcinoma, a rare type of cancer in dogs, was studied in 23 cases to understand how it affects dogs and their chances of survival. The dogs showed common signs like not eating, being very tired, vomiting, and having belly pain. Unfortunately, most of the dogs had a very short survival time, with an average of just one day, largely because many were put to sleep soon after being diagnosed. Most of the dogs also had cancer that had spread to other parts of the body at the time of diagnosis, which shows how aggressive this disease can be. The study highlights the importance of detecting this cancer early, but it remains unclear how effective treatments like surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy are for dogs with this condition.
Abstract
Exocrine pancreatic carcinoma is uncommon in the dog and the veterinary literature surrounding the disease is minimal. Twenty-three cases of canine exocrine pancreatic carcinoma were reviewed in a retrospective manner to obtain information on clinical presentation, behaviour and survival associated with the disease. Presenting clinical signs were nonspecific and included anorexia, lethargy, vomiting and abdominal pain. The overall median survival time was only 1 day but was confounded by the large number of dogs that were euthanized shortly after diagnosis. Metastatic disease was detected in 78% of cases at the time of diagnosis, attesting to the aggressive nature of the disease. Neither lymph node metastasis, tumour size nor tumour location had an impact on overall survival. Only one patient was a previous diabetic who is contrary to reports of the disease in people and felines. This retrospective study reaffirms the need for early detection measures to optimize disease control. However, the benefits of therapy with surgery or radiation and adjuvant chemotherapy remain to be elucidated in dogs with exocrine pancreatic carcinoma.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32803885/