Question: My dog was recently diagnosed with a hemangiosarcoma of the spleen. She was completely normal and then collapsed in the kitchen. She seemed very weak and we rushed her to the veterinarian.
She was bleeding into her abdomen and she had emergency surgery to remove the bleeding tumor. Now she is back to normal. My veterinarian said the tumor was removed from her spleen and it was very aggressive and her prognosis is poor. I do not understand how my dog could be normal one day, and dying from cancer the next.
Answer: I know it is very difficult to understand how this can happen so quickly. Aggressive cancer can grow rapidly, and hemangiosarcomas are very aggressive tumors. They grow rapidly in only weeks and can cause the patient to become suddenly weak since bleeding occurs.
Hemangiosarcomas arise from the lining of the blood vessels. As they grow larger and larger, bleeding from the tumor occurs. If there is rapid bleeding the patient becomes rapidly anemic from blood loss. This means that you see signs as you describe like collapse, lethargy, and white or pale gums.
The spleen is a very vascular organ and is the most common location for a hemangiosarcoma. Removing the spleen and the tumor stops the bleeding. This is why your dog has returned to normal so quickly after surgery. Once the bleeding tumor is removed, the anemia resolves.
Unfortunately, since hemangiosaromas arise from the lining of the blood vessel, they are highly metastatic tumors. This means the tumor has a high chance of shedding cancer cells into the blood vessels. The cancer cells can implant and grow in other places in the abdominal cavity. This usually happens within two or three months after surgery.
Generally, chemotherapy is used to try to destroy the cancer cells before they implant in other organs. Unfortunately, since this tumor is so aggressive, the chemotherapy is usually not a curative treatment option. It slows down the progression of the spread of the tumor and may give the patient a longer time before metastasis is detected.
Chemotherapy treatments are well tolerated by most canine patients and this is the next treatment step that would be indicated for your dog.
Stephanie Correa, DVMBoard Certified in Oncology
Animal Cancer Care Clinic
www.AnimalCancerCareClinic.com
Read more articles by Dr. Correa | Ask her a question
Source: http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/pawshere/2011/04/26/how-can-cancer-spring-up-so-suddenly-in-dogs/
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