Having just lost my lovely greyhound to old age last Friday (her legs went) . More bad news, my rescued lurcher of about 11-12yrs has now been diagnosed with spindle cell tumour and has to go for an op on monday to remove this. Has anyone else had experience of this type of tumour.
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Spindle Cell Tumour
- Thread starter dizzyliz
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Yes, my old girl Callie (we took her came to us with 2 spindle cell tumours, which were removed. One of them returned and had to be removed a second time, the other we had no further problems with.
There are quite a few different types of Spindle Cell tumours, and different grades of aggressiveness, so you won't really know the full prognosis until after the tumour has been removed and examined. Some are low-grade and you probably won't have any further problems, others are more aggressive and might recur, although I believe that it's rare for them to spread to other parts of the body.
Loads of good wishes for Monday, I hope the op goes well and the results are good :luck:
There are quite a few different types of Spindle Cell tumours, and different grades of aggressiveness, so you won't really know the full prognosis until after the tumour has been removed and examined. Some are low-grade and you probably won't have any further problems, others are more aggressive and might recur, although I believe that it's rare for them to spread to other parts of the body.
Loads of good wishes for Monday, I hope the op goes well and the results are good :luck:
There is a post pinned in the health part from Zephyr.
Henry had spindle cell 18 mths ago removed and all clear so far.
Best wishes for Monday- I can remember how worried I was what did help was reading about Zephyrs situation and talking it through. Please pm me if you want to talk it through.
Anne
Henry had spindle cell 18 mths ago removed and all clear so far.
Best wishes for Monday- I can remember how worried I was what did help was reading about Zephyrs situation and talking it through. Please pm me if you want to talk it through.
Anne
Thanks so much to Annie and Feefee for your reassurring replies. It means a great deal to me for someone to be able to say about their experience. I have had a rotten year losing three dogs, and now this and havent heard of this one. Although on level terms with my vets in that I ask and probe as to what is what, you never seem to get a full story. I am worried. She is such a sweetie and isnt really showing any form of illness at all. She is a smooth coated lurcher and the lump appeared so quickly and we acted on it quickly so I am keeping my fingers crossed. I shall update again once the results are through and thanks so much for the offer to pm you. I am fairly new to the forum and havent a clue at the moment how to pm but thanks so much for your support and the offer.
My old boy Alfie (now 12 and a half) had a spindle cell tumour removed from his neck in March this year. The vet told me that it is the 'best' type of cancer to be diagnosed with -if that makes sense :wacko: because, although it can recur in the same place if a large enough margin is not removed, it doesn't spread to other organs.
Since they usually grow just under the skin, spindle cell tumours can be easily spotted and removed, and so are not usually life threatening- depending of course on where they grow.
Alfie's was under the skin on the side of his neck- luckily, being an old boy, there was plenty of loose skin so it was easy to remove! I have attached a photo of him taken just after the op- the scar is not even visible now, and so far so good- no sign of the cancer returning :luck:
My vet did think that they see more Whippets, Greyhounds and Lurchers with this type of tumour than any other breeds- wonder why?
Liz and the Monellis
Since they usually grow just under the skin, spindle cell tumours can be easily spotted and removed, and so are not usually life threatening- depending of course on where they grow.
Alfie's was under the skin on the side of his neck- luckily, being an old boy, there was plenty of loose skin so it was easy to remove! I have attached a photo of him taken just after the op- the scar is not even visible now, and so far so good- no sign of the cancer returning :luck:
My vet did think that they see more Whippets, Greyhounds and Lurchers with this type of tumour than any other breeds- wonder why?
Liz and the Monellis
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Woody my whippet had a spindle cell sarcoma removed from his back...I was told that spindle cell sarcomas are an aggressive but low grade cancer and that there is a 50% chance of it returning at the same site within two years. usually they need to be removed with a good margin of skin around them to be sure all cells have been taken away. Woody's tumour did return after approx four years and was successfully removed for a second time. He sadly was pts recently aged 13yrs but the tumour had not returned again and his death was completely unrelated.
edited to add...spindle cell sarcomas can develop anywhere in the body and sometimes a tumour on the body surface may only be the tip of the iceburg.Woody was checked to make sure there weren't other spindle cell tumours elsewhere as they can spread all over ie lots of little tumours, even in the lungs etc, often only one on the skin surface is noted and when the dog in question becomes ill later on, it can then be discovered that there are multiple tumours throughout the system.sorry that wasn't meant to be scary, it's just a possibility with spindle cells.
edited to add...spindle cell sarcomas can develop anywhere in the body and sometimes a tumour on the body surface may only be the tip of the iceburg.Woody was checked to make sure there weren't other spindle cell tumours elsewhere as they can spread all over ie lots of little tumours, even in the lungs etc, often only one on the skin surface is noted and when the dog in question becomes ill later on, it can then be discovered that there are multiple tumours throughout the system.sorry that wasn't meant to be scary, it's just a possibility with spindle cells.
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Thanks so Much to Alfie (what a lovelylooking dog) and to whippetsrule. Most grateful for the advice and information. I guess I will have to wait for the agonising results once the ops been performed on Monday.
Thanks to everyone again.xx
Thanks to everyone again.xx
Well my vet certainly never told me that! He said that they can recur at the same site but were very unlikely to spread to organs etc...
Oh well, something else to worry about now!
Liz and the Monellis
Well my vet certainly never told me that! He said that they can recur at the same site but were very unlikely to spread to organs etc...
Oh well, something else to worry about now!
Liz and the Monellis
Yes thats what the vet told my husband on the phone as well that they only stay in the same place and are usually outward growing not inwardly.Im sorry too that I didnt realise you had lost your gorgeous dog.
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We only found out about the spindle cell sarcomas being possibly anywhere in the body when Badger was recently unwell...the vet thought Badger was the one who had had the spindle cell sarcoma removed( that's the trouble with being at the vets a lot with different dogs, off the top of his head he thought it had been Badger with the original spindle cell) and at first thought his heart/respiration problems were possibly caused by spindle cell sarcomas being elsewhere as well...they don't actually spread elsewhere sorry, I meant that they can be in multiple sites and that the one you see on the surface is not necessarily the only one and that a dog would start showing symptoms if they are at other locations...sorry brain not in gear tonight.
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http://www.nativeremedies.com/petalive/art...ll-sarcoma.html
this is interesting as it says they can actually spread although they tend to form single tumours, they can be in multiple locations and from other articles i've looked at, they can be anywhere from kidneys to bones to skin. I do know my friend ,definitely was of the opinion that they could be in the lungs as well as throughout the abdomen. I think originally with Woody he removed a two centimetre margin of normal looking tissue around the obvious tumour, which extended from the muscle tissue in his back and into the skin surface. The tumour appeared over a few weeks and although not very large in diameter,it extended well into his back.
this is interesting as it says they can actually spread although they tend to form single tumours, they can be in multiple locations and from other articles i've looked at, they can be anywhere from kidneys to bones to skin. I do know my friend ,definitely was of the opinion that they could be in the lungs as well as throughout the abdomen. I think originally with Woody he removed a two centimetre margin of normal looking tissue around the obvious tumour, which extended from the muscle tissue in his back and into the skin surface. The tumour appeared over a few weeks and although not very large in diameter,it extended well into his back.
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The confusion with spindle cell tumours is that under the microscope, they're generally a combination of mixed cells and/ or mixed tumours with a primitive origin.
How they behave on the patient gives a better idea of whether they're malignant. i.e. if they're large, deep, rapid growing and infiltrated into the blood supply then they're likely to be malignant. If they're small, superficial, slow growing and have a poor blood supply they're likely to be benign.
It's no hard fast rule but generally tumours in the elderly are slower growing than they are in the young. The potential downfall is that younger patients tend to be healthier overall, ameniable to anaesthetic and potentially aggresive surgery.
Useful article> http://merckveterinarymanual.com/mvm/index...tm/bc/72217.htm
How they behave on the patient gives a better idea of whether they're malignant. i.e. if they're large, deep, rapid growing and infiltrated into the blood supply then they're likely to be malignant. If they're small, superficial, slow growing and have a poor blood supply they're likely to be benign.
It's no hard fast rule but generally tumours in the elderly are slower growing than they are in the young. The potential downfall is that younger patients tend to be healthier overall, ameniable to anaesthetic and potentially aggresive surgery.
Useful article> http://merckveterinarymanual.com/mvm/index...tm/bc/72217.htm
Hi there,
Tried to PM you but doesnt seem to have worked. Just received the Good News that the lump removed was Clear. I am thrilled to say the least. Thanks for your support it was most appreciated.
So pleased for you. I remember like it was yesterday hearing that kind of news- such joy after so much worry.
best wishes to you all.
Anne
must go as the (spindle cell cleared) love of my life is demanding a little last snack before bedtime. I'm sure yours will bounce back to full health very quickly.
best wishes to you all.
Anne
must go as the (spindle cell cleared) love of my life is demanding a little last snack before bedtime. I'm sure yours will bounce back to full health very quickly.
Hi Just want to wish those lovely people on here that replied to my recent post A Very Happy Christmas and Best Wishes for 2010.
Honey has recovered really well from her surgery and the relief at knowing that the lump was benign has been such excellent News.
Thanks to those, who gave me their support at a worrying time, it was really appreciated. :santa: :santa:
Honey has recovered really well from her surgery and the relief at knowing that the lump was benign has been such excellent News.
Thanks to those, who gave me their support at a worrying time, it was really appreciated. :santa: :santa:
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