Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Hi there,
I posted here yesterday and Jerry let me know I could post hazel's Xrays here. The surgeon and radiologist said, "they believe it is a bone cyst but can't 100% say it's not cancer." They said that because it is regular and smooth they believe it is more likely to be a cyst rather than cancer. However, they also noted being regular and smooth could still be consistent with cancer. A friend's vet who is not an expert on the matter believes it is almost certainly cancer. If there is anyone here who would feel comfortable sharing their opinion, or who has experience with diagnosing dogs with either, please do. Chest xrays did not show anything.
For additional context, Hazel was running at the dog park and all of a sudden she stopped, yelped and cried out and held up her back right leg. She has multiple hairline fractures in her ankle. I took her in for what I thought was a broken/sprained ankle and then the doctor saw the cyst/tumor from the Xrays. She had never shown to be in pain before the incident and was walking perfectly prior with no limp. She is a very healthy 7-year-old chocolate lab who has never been to the vet for being sick in her life.
Hazel's surgery is scheduled for 1/11/23 but we won't have biopsy results until 7-10 days after that. I am worried sick and just wish I knew for sure.
Thank you in advance.
Best,
Madison
I agree this looks like a tumor but it is not compatible with osteosarcoma. I am glad that her chest xrays are clear. It sounds like due to the fractures the leg needs to come off anyway and then the biopsy will be performed which is typically what I would do. If the dog was not lame without any fractures I would do a fine needle aspirate to look for cancer cells (this is different than a bone biopsy) but at this time it seems unnecessary. Other possibilities include fungal infection such as Valley Fever or Blastomycosis but often these dogs are sick with elevated blood counts and fevers.
Did they by chance take abdominal films or perform an ultrasound? Sometimes hemangiosarcoma can metastasize to the bone but often originates in the spleen.
Pam
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