Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Checking lymph nodes for mouth cancer spread in dogs with oral
By Grimes, Janet A et al.·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2019·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Histologic evaluation of mandibular and medial retropharyngeal lymph nodes during staging of oral malignant melanoma and squamous cell carcinoma in dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with oral malignant melanoma (OMM) and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) underwent surgery to remove lymph nodes in their neck to check for cancer spread. The study found that about 37% of dogs with OMM and 29% with OSCC had cancer in their lymph nodes. Notably, some dogs had cancer in lymph nodes on the opposite side of where the tumor was located. The researchers recommend that both sides of the lymph nodes should be examined during surgery to ensure any spread of cancer is detected.
People also search for: dog oral melanoma treatment · dog lymph node cancer symptoms · dog squamous cell carcinoma prognosis
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To assess histologic evaluation of mandibular lymph nodes (MLNs) and medial retropharyngeal lymph nodes (MRLNs) for metastatic disease during tumor staging for dogs with oral malignant melanoma (OMM) and oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC). DESIGN: Retrospective multi-institutional study. ANIMALS: 27 dogs with OMM and 21 dogs with OSCC. PROCEDURES: Medical record databases of 8 institutions were searched to identify dogs with OMM or OSCC that underwent unilateral or bilateral extirpation of the MLNs and MRLNs during the same procedure between January 2004 and April 2016. Information extracted from the records included signalment, primary mass location and size, diagnostic imaging results, histologic results for the primary tumor and all lymph nodes evaluated, and whether distant metastasis developed. RESULTS: Prevalence of lymph node metastasis did not differ significantly between dogs with OMM (10/27 [37%]) and dogs with OSCC (6/21 [29%]). Distant metastasis was identified in 11 (41%) dogs with OMM and was suspected in 1 dog with OSCC. The MRLN was affected in 13 of 16 dogs with lymph node metastasis, and 3 of those dogs had metastasis to the MRLN without concurrent metastasis to an MLN. Metastasis was identified in lymph nodes contralateral to the primary tumor in 4 of 17 dogs that underwent contralateral lymph node removal. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results indicated histologic evaluation of only 1 MLN was insufficient to definitively rule out lymph node metastasis in dogs with OMM or OSCC; therefore, bilateral lymphadenectomy of the MLN and MRLN lymphocentra is recommended for such dogs.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30938614/