Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Where abdominal masses in dogs are more likely cancerous
By Paola Valenti et al.·Published in Animals·2021·Clinica Veterinaria Malpensa, Samarate, 21017 Varese, Italy, CH·View original on DOAJ →
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Original publication title: The Site of Origin of Canine Abdominal Masses Correlates with the Risk of Malignancy: Retrospective Study of 123 Cases
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A dog with an abdominal mass was brought in for evaluation, and it was found that masses in the gastrointestinal area are more likely to be cancerous. In a study of 122 dogs with abdominal masses, 69 were diagnosed with malignant tumors, especially those located in the gastrointestinal tract. The masses were surgically removed and examined, revealing that larger masses were often not linked to any specific organ. This information can help veterinarians assess the risk of malignancy based on the mass's location and size.
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Abstract
The detection of an abdominal mass represents a common finding in clinical practice. The aim of this study was to retrospectively describe the tissue distribution and diagnosis of abdominal masses amenable to surgical removal in a canine population. Dogs with abdominal masses with a minimum diameter of 3 cm were selected. Cases were classified, based on the anatomical location, as splenic, gastrointestinal, hepatobiliary, genital, and masses not associated with any organ. Masses were surgically removed and formalin-fixed for the histological examination. Collected data were statistically analyzed. A total of 123 masses were collected from 122 dogs. Sixty-nine masses were classified as malignant neoplasia, 15 as benign, and 39 as non-neoplastic. The abdominal masses were 5.8-fold more likely to be malignant if located in the gastrointestinal tract (<i>p</i> = 0.01). A significant association between the size and the site of the masses was identified, the masses not associated with any organ being larger than the genital and splenic lesions (<i>p</i> = 0.008). This case series describes the most frequent location in association with the histopathological diagnosis of canine abdominal masses and suggests that the gastrointestinal location was related to a higher risk of representing a malignant neoplasm.
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Search related cases →Original publication on DOAJ: https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11040962