Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
High calcium levels linked to Sertoli cell tumor in a dog
By Strait, K et al.·Published in The Journal of small animal practice·2025·Department of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Hypercalcaemia in association with Sertoli cell tumour in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 9-year-old mixed breed dog was brought in because he was lethargic, not eating well, drinking a lot, and had swollen mammary glands. Blood tests showed very high calcium levels, and a CT scan revealed a mass in his abdomen that turned out to be a Sertoli cell tumor, which is a type of testicular cancer. The dog underwent surgery to remove the tumor and some of the mammary tissue, and afterward, his calcium levels returned to normal, and the swelling in his mammary glands went away.
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Abstract
A 9-year-old, presumed male castrated mixed breed dog was evaluated for lethargy, hyporexia, polyuria, polydipsia and diffuse gynaecomastia. Bloodwork revealed severe hypercalcaemia and hyposthenuria. CT scan showed a caudal abdominal mass consistent with a Sertoli cell tumour on cytology. Diffuse, nodular mammary gland enlargement was consistent with mammary gland hyperplasia on cytology. A malignancy panel was inconsistent with hyperparathyroidism and showed a normal PTHrP. Abdominal exploratory laparotomy, abdominal mass resections and right chain mammectomy were performed. Sertoli cell tumour and mammary gland hyperplasia were confirmed via histopathology. Hypercalcaemia decreased to within normal range and gynaecomastia in the left mammary chain resolved postoperatively. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first case report of hypercalcaemia associated with Sertoli cell tumour in a dog. While several mechanisms have been proposed for hypercalcaemia of malignancy, the mechanism is unclear in this case.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39800929/