Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Outcomes after surgical amputation of dog toes from lab cases
By Wobeser, B K et al.·Published in Veterinary pathology·2007·Department of Veterinary Pathology, Canada·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Diagnoses and clinical outcomes associated with surgically amputated canine digits submitted to multiple veterinary diagnostic laboratories.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study looked at dogs that had a toe amputated to treat or diagnose problems, finding that most of the amputated digits had tumors. Out of 404 cases, 296 were diagnosed with neoplasms (tumors), with squamous cell carcinoma being the most common. Unfortunately, many of these tumors were malignant, and some dogs developed metastatic disease, meaning the cancer spread to other parts of the body. For dogs with melanoma, the outlook was particularly grim, with an average survival time of about a year. Treatment options and outcomes varied, so it's important for pet owners to discuss individual cases with their veterinarian.
People also search for: dog toe amputation cancer · squamous cell carcinoma in dogs · melanoma prognosis in dogs
Abstract
Amputation is commonly performed to both treat and diagnose conditions affecting the digits of dogs. Although histopathologic evaluation of these digits is routinely done, data on the prevalence and prognosis of neoplasms of the digit are scarce. The records of multiple veterinary diagnostic laboratories were searched to identify submissions of amputated digits from dogs. Four hundred twenty-eight separate submissions were reviewed for diagnosis, age, sex, limb of origin, and digits affected, and the original submitting clinics were surveyed to determine clinical outcome of the animal. No diagnosis could be agreed upon in 24 animals, and these were excluded from the study. Kaplan-Meier product-limit method was used to determine the disease-free interval and survival time. Neoplastic disease was identified in 296 of 404 submissions, with exclusively inflammatory lesions composing 108 cases. A total of 30 different neoplastic processes were identified. In 233 (77.7%) of the neoplastic cases, a malignant tumor was identified. Squamous cell carcinoma was the most commonly identified tumor (n = 109, 36.3%), and 11 of 42 dogs for which clinical follow-up information was available developed metastatic disease. Squamous cell carcinoma of the digit appears to have a greater metastatic potential than that occurring elsewhere in the body. Other common diagnoses included melanoma (n = 52, 17.3%), soft-tissue sarcoma (n = 29, 9.7%), and mast cell tumor (n = 20, 6.7%). Melanomas were associated with poor prognoses, with a median survival time of 365 days.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17491077/