Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Dedifferentiated Chondrosarcoma in the Dog and Cat: A Case Series and Review of the Literature.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association
- Year:
- 2018
- Authors:
- Vinayak, Arathi et al.
- Affiliation:
- From the VCA West Coast Specialty and Emergency Animal Hospital · United States
Plain-English summary
This study looked at eight pets, seven dogs and one cat, diagnosed with a rare and aggressive type of bone cancer called dedifferentiated chondrosarcoma. The researchers reviewed medical records to understand how this cancer behaves and how it appears on imaging tests like X-rays and MRIs. They found that, similar to people, pets with this cancer often have a poor chance of long-term survival and a high risk of the cancer spreading to the lungs. The imaging showed a mix of hard and soft tissue areas, which reflects the different types of cancer cells present. Recognizing this cancer early could help veterinarians create better treatment plans for affected pets.
Abstract
This retrospective case series describes seven dogs and one cat diagnosed with dedifferentiated chondrosarcoma, an uncommon, aggressive variant of chondrosarcoma. The purpose of the study is to describe clinical, imaging, and histopathological findings of this tumor. Medical records and the diagnostic laboratory database at Colorado State University from 2000 to 2015 were reviewed and complete medical records were available for the eight animals in this report. Similar to what has been reported in people, poor long-term survival and high metastatic rate, particularly to the lungs, was observed in our case series. A bimorphic pattern on imaging (radiographs, computed tomography, and MRI) consisting of mineralized and nonmineralized areas was seen mirroring the high-grade sarcomatous component adjacent to a low-grade chondroid component seen histopathologically. A review of the human literature including suspected etiology, imaging findings, histopathology, and survival times with various treatment options is presented. This article describes the first reported cases of dedifferentiated chondrosarcoma in the veterinary literature. Early accurate recognition could lead to treatment plans tailored to this variant.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29131675/