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Peer-reviewed veterinary case report

Prognostic factors for thyroid cancer in dogs after surgery

By Campos, M et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2014·Department of Medicine and Clinical Biology of Small Animals·View original on PubMed

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Original publication title: Clinical, pathologic, and immunohistochemical prognostic factors in dogs with thyroid carcinoma.

Species:
dog

Plain-English summary

A group of 70 dogs with thyroid tumors was studied to find out what factors might predict how well they would do after treatment. Most of the dogs had a type of thyroid cancer called differentiated follicular cell thyroid carcinoma, while some had medullary thyroid carcinoma. Dogs that had larger tumors or showed signs of spreading to other areas had a worse outlook. For those that underwent surgery to remove the tumor, the type of thyroid cancer didn't significantly affect survival, but signs of blood vessel invasion were linked to a shorter disease-free period. Understanding these factors can help veterinarians and pet owners make better treatment decisions.

People also search for: dog thyroid cancer prognosis · thyroidectomy for dogs · dog tumor size and survival

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Prognostic markers for dogs with thyroid tumors are limited. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To identify clinical, pathologic, and immunohistochemical prognostic factors for dogs with thyroid tumors. ANIMALS: Seventy dogs with thyroid neoplasia. METHODS: Retrospective study. Dogs with thyroid neoplasia were included when follow-up information and formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor samples were available. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) was performed for thyroglobulin, calcitonin, Ki-67, and E-cadherin. Correlation of tumor variables (diameter, volume, localization, scintigraphic uptake, thyroid function, IHC) with local invasiveness and metastatic disease was performed on all tumor samples. Forty-four dogs treated by thyroidectomy were included in a survival analysis. RESULTS: Fifty dogs (71%) had differentiated follicular cell thyroid carcinoma (dFTC) and 20 (29%) had medullary thyroid carcinoma (MTC). At diagnosis, tumor diameter (P = .007; P = .038), tumor volume (P = .020), tumor fixation (P = .002), ectopic location (P = .002), follicular cell origin (P = .044), and Ki-67 (P = .038) were positively associated with local invasiveness; tumor diameter (P = .002), tumor volume (P = .023), and bilateral location (P = .012) were positively associated with presence of distant metastases. Forty-four dogs (28 dFTC, 16 MTC; stage I-III) underwent thyroidectomy. Outcome was comparable between dogs with dFTC and MTC. Macroscopic (P = .007) and histologic (P = .046) vascular invasion were independent negative predictors for disease-free survival. Although time to presentation, histologic vascular invasion and Ki-67 were negatively associated with time to metastases, and time to presentation was negatively associated with time to recurrence, no independent predictors were found. E-cadherin expression was not associated with outcome. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Prognostic factors have been identified that provide relevant information for owners and clinicians.

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Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25252127/