Dog with heart tumor blocking blood flow and lung embolism

Abstract

A 13-year-old spayed female rottweiler crossbreed dog was presented with an 8-day history of abnormal gait and collapse associated with excitement or physical activity. A cardiac gallop was noticed on thoracic auscultation, and a 1st-degree atrioventricular block and sinus tachycardia were noted on an electrocardiogram. Echocardiography identified a hypoechoic, irregularly marginated luminal mass in the right ventricle at the level of the pulmonic valves. Postmortem gross examination confirmed the presence of a soft, polypoid, and botryoid mass (9 × 3 × 3 cm) with a smooth and glistening surface attached to the endocardium of the right ventricular outflow tract and extending to the pulmonary artery. The histological findings were consistent with the diagnosis of myxosarcoma with pulmonary embolism. In addition, the dog in this report had a right atrial hemangiosarcoma and a cutaneous hemangioma unrelated to her clinical findings. Key clinical message: Cardiac myxosarcomas are very rare neoplasms in dogs and concomitant primary heart tumors of different histogenesis are even rarer in dogs. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of coexistent myxosarcoma and hemangiosarcoma in the heart of a dog. Cardiac myxosarcomas should be considered in the differential diagnosis of intracavitary heart masses associated with signs of cardiac obstruction and failure.