Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Using CT lymphangiography to check lymph node spread in dogs
By Grimes, Janet A et al.·Published in Veterinary and comparative oncology·2020·Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Use of indirect computed tomography lymphangiography to determine metastatic status of sentinel lymph nodes in dogs with a pre-operative diagnosis of melanoma or mast cell tumour.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs diagnosed with melanoma or mast cell tumors underwent a special imaging test called computed tomography lymphangiography (CTL) to check for cancer spread to their lymph nodes. The study found that CTL did not reliably indicate whether the sentinel lymph nodes (the first nodes to which cancer would spread) were affected by metastasis. Instead, the dogs still needed to have their lymph nodes surgically removed and examined under a microscope to confirm if cancer had spread. This means that while CTL can help visualize lymph nodes, it cannot replace the need for surgical evaluation in these cases.
People also search for: dog melanoma treatment · mast cell tumor lymph node spread · dog cancer lymph node surgery
Abstract
Canine melanomas and mast cell tumours (MCTs) frequently metastasize to lymph nodes, worsening prognosis compared with dogs without metastasis. Sentinel lymph node (SLN) evaluation is more specific than evaluation of the lymph node closest to the tumour, which may not be the draining lymph node. Computed tomography lymphangiography (CTL) allows for SLN identification and one study of canine mammary tumours found that CTL was able to assist in determination of the metastatic status of inguinal SLNs prior to extirpation and histopathology. The objective of the present study was to evaluate CTL for use in determining metastasis to the SLN in dogs with a pre-operative diagnosis of melanoma or MCT in various locations by correlating CTL findings with histopathology. The hypothesis was that CTL would not be able to determine the metastatic status of lymph nodes, based on author experience. Dogs were prospectively enrolled and underwent CTL and subsequent SLN extirpation. Histopathology results for the primary tumour, SLN, and additional extirpated lymph nodes were recorded. Fifteen dogs were enrolled and 21 SLN were evaluated. The SLN enhancement pattern (heterogeneous, homogenous or peripheral) was not associated with metastasis, nor was the attenuation value at 1 minute, 5 minutes, or the change in attenuation value. No correlation was found between CTL findings and metastatic status of SLNs. Based on these results, CTL alone cannot be used to diagnose SLN metastasis. Extirpation of the SLN with histopathology is recommended to diagnose lymph node metastasis in dogs with melanoma and MCT.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32216019/