Elmo has a mass cell tumor.

[Roxanna]

I got the bad news today.

He looks well for now. No signs of anything serious yet. We're gonna enjoy him as long as we can.

He's been the sweetest dog we've ever owned. He's also the one to make us laugh every five minutes.

For now, he's just happy to be back from the Vet and is napping with Tyra.

 

[Austin's Mom]

Sorry to hear about Elmo, but MCT's are not necessarily a death sentence. My Austin had one removed almost 4 years ago, a grade 2. The most important thing is that they get clean margins meaning the tumor is localized. Did you get a grade on his?

 

[Roxanna]

Not yet. Just got the results from the smear. The vet said he would call me back again with advice on how to proceed.

We was gonna get more information from the Lab first.

 

[Shirley Jo]

My heart and my prayers go out to you. We will hope for the best..

 

[SuzanneC]

Don't write your dog off just because of the diagnosis of Mast Cell Tumor!! Yes, they can be aggressive tumors, but they aren't always.

The grade of the tumor is important. You can't tell grade just from an aspirate, the tumor actually has to be surgically removed from the dog and examined microscopically. At that time, they can also determine whether or not the surgical margins are clean. Grade 1 and low grade 2 tumors, when completely excised, do not usually require further treatment. High grade 2, grade 3, or tumors with dirty margins may require further surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy.

I don't have my oncology notes handy right now, but if you search for other threads on MCT, I know I've posted long-term survival statistics in the past. During my last semester in vet school, my own dog was diagnosed with a Mast Cell Tumor, and at age 13, she's still doing just fine.

 

[Roxanna]

The Vet said MCT shouldn't be operated on because it causes them to spread faster.

Maybe I need to take Elmo for a second opinion.

 

[SuzanneC]

Not all MCTs will spread. Grades 1 and 2 do not tend to spread. Grade 3 tumors are much more likely to spread, not because of removing them, but because of the nature of the tumor cells themselves. As I said before, there's no way to determine tumor grade WITHOUT removing the tumor. Under most circumstances, I would not leave a Mast Cell Tumor on a dog. The risk of it being a grade 3 tumor and spreading is much greater than the risk of any grade of tumor spreading because of surgical removal.

Here's the information I posted in a thread several months ago:
Some mast cell tumors (histologic grades I and II) can be cured by complete excision with wide margins (<2-3 cm). For tumors that are not completely excised, or are in areas that are not amenable to surgery, radiation treatment can be performed, with a reported local control rate of 68% at one year. Chemotherapy with vincristine is also sometimes used. In one study, with surgery alone, dogs with grade II tumors had a survival rate of 44% at 1500 days post-surgery.

 

[Roxanna]

Thanks for the info Suzanne. I'm certainly gonna discuss this with the Vet. I'm a little disappointed in him. He was supposed to call back with further information today and that didn't happen.

 

[Tricia77]

Roxanna

My Curly has had 2 grade 2 mast cells removed. He is doing wonderully! Chin up. Hugs and prayers from us.
Tricia