Mast Cell Tumor

[Caberhill]

Evening all,

My 5 year old lab is off into the vets tomorrow to get a lump that developed over the past two weeks removed from her front right leg. The lump itself is red and hairless and the prognosis by the
V E T is that it could either be a wart or a Mast Cell Tumor.

If it is the latter, what sort of things should I expect? Best & worst case scenario?

Cheers,

Ali

 

[limulus]

If its the latter I wouldnt be overly worried, tis just a wart afterall.

 

[Caberhill]

Dunno like, warts are pretty terrifying...

 

[Selous]

Mast cell tumours can be nasty, the trouble is that they have numerous satellite cells away from the main lump which lead to a high rate of recurrence after local resection. Once a mass is confirmed as a mast cell tumour by fine needle aspiration and cytology, the first surgery to attempt removal must be very carefully planned as wide margins of apparently normal tissue need to be removed. This can make the surgery, particularly closure exceptionally challenging. Have a fine needle aspirate done first before surgery is attempted

 

[Buchan]

For an orthopod, that's not bad! Anyway, you are supposed to be on hols!
I'll add another possibility - histiocytoma, a skin tumour, but one that doesn't spread. However, you need histology once the mass is removed, and it's worth paying for. Mast cells get graded 1-3. 1 is localised and cutting out is usually curative. Grade 3 can spread at the site, or metastasise elsewhere. 2 is harder to predict and can go either way.