Lymphosarcoma Of Dogs

2024 Author: Sebastian Paterson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:47

Unfortunately, and perhaps fortunately, during these years there was no domestic literature on practical animal oncology, and there was no access to foreign literature. Therefore, a lot of work had to be done to study and adapt medical techniques for the treatment of dogs and cats. As a result, Efimov's clinic has developed and applied original methods of treatment, which are well tolerated, low toxicity and allow for therapy without resorting to hospitalization, in contrast to the methods used by foreign colleagues.

Ogarkova Tatyana Nikolaevna graduated from the Leningrad Veterinary Institute in 1991. She has been working in the veterinary clinic of Dr. Efimov since 1993. She began to engage in chemotherapy of malignant tumors in 1996 and is one of the first veterinary oncologists in Russia. An important role is played by well-organized diagnostics of oncological diseases in the Efimov clinic. Our collection of cytological and histological specimens is the largest in Russia, and, in terms of its uniqueness, possibly in the world.

For the treatment of lymphosarcoma, dogs from the European Union were repeatedly brought to our clinic. Our European colleagues were surprised by the simplicity, low cost and efficiency of our methods. Unfortunately, despite numerous reports at conferences on advanced training of practicing doctors, young St. Petersburg doctors are guided by foreign experience. Treatment methods used abroad have been tested in our clinic. In our opinion, they are certainly effective, but they require hospitalization of the dog and cause more side effects.

One of the most dangerous oncological diseases is lymphosarcoma.

Canine lymphosarcoma is a malignant tumor that affects the lymph nodes, spleen, liver, and bone marrow. Affected dogs aged 4 years and older. Breeds predisposed to the disease are: Doberman Pinschers, Rottweilers, Bernese Mountain Dog, Caucasian and Central Asian Shepherd Dogs, Boxers, all Mastiffs, including the Cane Corso. In dwarf dogs, the disease is very rare. A familial predisposition to this disease should be noted. It is often possible to find out that one of the parents of a sick dog died from lymphosarcoma. There have been cases of almost simultaneous illness of two dogs from the same litter.

Usually, lymphosarcoma develops in a short time. The period of the acute course of the disease is from several weeks to several months. The chronic course is less common. In this case, the illness lasts from six to eighteen months. The first signs of the disease are atypical, poorly expressed and often go unnoticed: weakness, rapid fatigue, sometimes an increase in body temperature up to 39.5 degrees. Then you can observe an increase in superficial lymph nodes. First of all, as a rule, retropharyngeal enlargement. Quite quickly, other superficial lymph nodes are involved in the process, as well as most of the internal lymph nodes. In 30% of cases, there is an increase in the spleen - splenomegaly. A significant increase in the pharyngeal lymph nodes leads to a narrowing of the airway lumen and difficulty in breathing. With hyperplasia of the lymph nodes of the pelvic cavity, edema of the hind limbs occurs. With any form of the course of the disease, immunodeficiency, intoxication, and exhaustion develop. If a dog suffering from lymphosarcoma is left untreated, death will occur several months after the first clinical signs appear.

The diagnosis is not difficult for an experienced oncologist. A preliminary diagnosis can be made on the basis of a vivid clinical picture. Usually, owners bring dogs to the stage when all or almost all of the superficial lymph nodes are enlarged: retropharyngeal, prescapular, axillary, popliteal and inguinal. On close examination, you can find an increase in the lymph nodes of the pelvic cavity, chest cavity and an increase in the spleen. The final diagnosis is based on the results of a cytological examination. Cytology is a microscopic examination of a smear of neoplasm tissue obtained by puncture with a conventional injection needle. Taking a sample for cytology is painless, safe and technically simple. It does not require local or general anesthesia, as well as forced fixation of the animal. I recommend taking tissue for research from the peripheral part of the lymph node. The results of cytology will be more reliable if 2 - 3 lymph nodes are examined, and the sample from each should be placed on a separate slide.

Since the results of cytology are decisive in establishing the diagnosis of lymphosarcoma, it is very important that the specialist has experience in working with samples obtained from animals. Recently, we have come across diagnoses made by medical cytomorphologists. Unfortunately, their conclusions are often wrong. Therefore, I would like to recommend that animal owners contact only veterinary specialists. In particular, our laboratory has more than thirty years of experience in working with cytological (tissue punctate smear) and histological (thin section of a whole piece of tissue) preparations. Our collection includes over ten thousand drugs.

After the diagnosis of lymphosarcoma is made and confirmed cytologically, the owners face the question of what to do with the sick dog. Unfortunately, lymphosarcoma is an incurable and fatal disease. Nevertheless, modern veterinary medicine can give a dog from 6 to 40 months of life without pain and excruciating procedures. The main treatment for lymphosarcoma is chemotherapy. This is an intravenous injection of drugs once every 3 to 6 weeks. Treatment is carried out on an outpatient basis. In between courses, the dog leads a normal life. Chemotherapy is very well tolerated by dogs. To reduce side effects, clinical and biochemical blood tests should be done before prescribing an individual course of chemotherapy; find out the presence of chronic diseases. An experienced doctor is able to develop an individual treatment tactics,in which the side effects will be minimal. With timely and adequate treatment, one can hope for a complete remission for at least 6 months.

A dog receiving chemotherapy should be monitored by a doctor. Regular blood tests are needed. Owners should note the slightest deviations in the dog's health and behavior. The joint work of the doctor and the owner makes it possible to adjust the chemotherapy regimen in time when necessary.

In conclusion, it should be noted that a timely appeal to an experienced specialist, the correct examination of your dog, the use of proven methods of treatment, despite the poor prognosis for final recovery, will give your pet many days of life.