Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Irish wolfhound with spinal tumor causing hind leg weakness
By Vaughan-Scott, T et al.·Published in Journal of the South African Veterinary Association·1999·Department of Medicine·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Spinal nephroblastoma in an Irish wolfhound.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 1-year-old Irish wolfhound was brought in because he was having trouble using his left back leg, which was getting worse over time. The vet found that he had a tumor in his spine, which was confirmed by testing the fluid around his spinal cord. Unfortunately, the tumor was too invasive for surgery, and the decision was made to euthanize him. This type of tumor, called nephroblastoma, is rare but should be considered in young, large dogs with similar symptoms. Sadly, the chances of recovery with surgery are low in these cases.
People also search for: Irish wolfhound leg weakness · dog spinal tumor symptoms · nephroblastoma in dogs treatment
Abstract
A 1-year-old Irish wolfhound was presented with a history of slowly progressive left pelvic limb paresis. A neurological examination demonstrated bilateral deficits referable to the thoracolumbar spinal cord. Lumbar cerebrospinal fluid contained neoplastic cells. An intradural, extramedullary mass was demonstrated by myelography at the caudal aspect of T13. Surgical excision was abandoned owing to severe macroscopic damage to, and apparent infiltration of, the cord, and the dog was euthanased. The tumour was diagnosed histologically as an extrarenal nephroblastoma. Nephroblastoma should be suspected in young, large-breed dogs with intradural extramedullary masses over spinal segments T10-L2. The prognosis for complete recovery after surgical excision is guarded to poor.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10855819/