Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Neoplastic pleural effusion and intrathoracic metastasis of a scapular osteosarcoma in a dog: a multidisciplinary integrated diagnostic approach.
- Journal:
- Veterinary clinical pathology
- Year:
- 2017
- Authors:
- Mesquita, Luis et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Small Animal Clinical Science · United Kingdom
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 10-year-old female mixed-breed dog was taken to the veterinary hospital because she was having trouble breathing and had fluid in her chest that wasn't getting better with medications. After draining the fluid, tests showed it contained unusual cells, which led to further imaging. A CT scan revealed thickening of the chest lining, several nodules in the lungs, and a concerning mass in her shoulder bone. Additional tests confirmed that the mass was an osteosarcoma (a type of bone cancer) that had spread to her chest. This thorough approach helped confirm the diagnosis of cancer-related fluid in her chest.
Abstract
A 10-year-old, female spayed mixed-breed or cross-bred dog was referred to the Small Animal Teaching Hospital of the University of Liverpool due to tachypnea, dyspnea, and pleural effusion not responding to diuretics and antibiotics. The chest was drained and cytology of the pleural fluid was consistent with a modified transudate with presence of atypical cells initially attributed to mesothelial hyperplasia and dysplasia. Computed tomography detected, in addition to the bilateral pleural effusion, diffuse pleural thickening, multiple pleural and pulmonary nodules, and a mineralized and lytic mass in the left scapula. Imaging findings were suggestive of a primary bone tumor with intrathoracic metastasis. Cytology of the left scapular and pleural masses revealed a malignant neoplasm highly suggestive of osteosarcoma. The diagnosis was confirmed by demonstration of a positive cytochemical reaction for alkaline phosphatase on prestained cytology slides. This finding prompted review of the initial interpretation of the pleural effusion cytology. The presence of neoplastic osteoblasts in the thoracic fluid was identified by a combination of cytochemistry, cell pellet immunohistochemistry, and transmission electron microscopy findings. In this report, a multidisciplinary integrated diagnostic approach was used to diagnose and confirm a neoplastic pleural effusion due to osteosarcoma metastasis in a dog.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28370186/