Canine Skin Cancer Overview
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Just because your dog has fur doesn't mean it is immune to the diseases of the skin, such as cancer. To get the latest information on this pervasive disease, we contacted three top veterinarians who specialize in canine cancer. Here are their answers to your most pressing questions.
The Dog Daily: How common is skin cancer in dogs?
Expert Insight: Skin cancer is the most prevalent type of cancer found in dogs, says Kevin A. Hahn, DVM, PhD, director of oncology services at Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists in Houston, Texas. In fact, nearly one-third of all dogs diagnosed with cancer have a tumor that originated on the skin or from the tissues of the skin.
The Dog Daily: What are the most common forms of skin cancer?
Expert Insight: Dogs tend to be diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma, basal cell carcinoma or mast cell tumors, says Dr. Hahn. Squamous cells are the cells that make up most of the skin, so squamous cell carcinoma refers to an abnormal growth of these cells. Basal cells line the deepest layer of the skin, so that's what is affected with basal cell carcinoma. Mast cells are a bit different because they can be found in other parts of the body. They are specialized cells involved with your dog's immune system.
The Dog Daily: If a dog spends a lot of time in the sun, is it more vulnerable to skin cancer?
Expert Insight: Of all the skin cancers, squamous cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma are often due to sun exposure. Mast cell tumors usually tend to occur in specific breeds, says Dr. Hahn.
The Dog Daily: So it's true that certain breeds get skin cancer more than others?
Expert Insight: Yes. Skin cancer is one of the most common tumors in dogs with shorter hair, says Gregory K. Ogilvie, DVM, who specializes in internal medicine and oncology at California Veterinary Specialists Angel Care Cancer Center in San Marcos, California. In addition, dogs with thin hair and fair skin are at greater risk for squamous cell carcinomas. Boxers, Boston terriers and pugs seem to be more susceptible to mast cell tumors of the skin, while poodles, cocker spaniels and other breeds can suffer from different types of skin cancer.
The Dog Daily: What's the best thing an owner can do to protect a dog from skin cancer?
Expert Insight: Pay attention, says Michael R. Moyer, DVM, director of shelter animal medicine at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in Philadelphia. Routinely check your dog's skin everywhere, and not just in the areas you usually pet. This means under the dog's belly, on the bottom of its paws, in between the foot pads, and so on.
The Dog Daily: What should you do if you've found a lump that might be suspicious?
Expert Insight: Take your dog to a veterinarian right away for an evaluation, suggests Dr. Moyer. Not all lumps are cancerous, but your doctor might suggest medical procedures such as a fine needle aspirate (a type of minimally invasive biopsy), a biopsy sample or a complete removal to be safe. Additionally, learning whether the tumor might have spread is vital in cases where a malignancy is suspected. This means that X-rays, blood tests and ultrasound procedures might be recommended.
The Dog Daily: Are there any tips for figuring out which lumps are benign and which are more serious?
Expert Insight: Any lump or bump should be considered suspect, says Dr. Hahn. Sometimes cancer goes undetected because it can resemble other less-serious skin ailments. It may look round, smooth and be slow-growing, like a wart. Or it could occur rapidly, compromising the health of the skin and looking like a nasty bug bite or wound. That's why many veterinarians will say "when in doubt, check it out." The best approach is the active approach. If the cyst or mass is changing in size or character (such as soft to hard), begins to bleed or is painful to the pet, then your doctor will probably suggest surgery as a course of action for treatment.
About the Author
Lambeth Hochwald is a New York City-based writer and editor whose work can be seen in national magazines. Her adopted dog, Ginger, is always at her side, especially when she's writing.
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Basal Carcinoma
I bought an Ultralight Sonic Bark Control collar for my two-year-old male Maltese and tried it for a few days. It did not work. A couple months later a lump appeared on his throat where the sonic collar had rested. I took him to the vet and it was a basal tumor that required surgery. The vet said, "Just in time; it was attempting to attach to his jugular vein!" My Maltese is an indoor dog with no over-exposure to sunlight. This sonic collar is the only collar he has ever had around his neck. I use a harness and lead when I take him out. The harness has no contact with the collar area. I'm on-line searching to see if there are any hints of problems of this kind from the use of these collars. I am concerned for all the pets out there whose owners may decide to try this product.
Posted by Judith Robinette on 2008-02-11 at 10:08:28
wart like condition found on my pug Malcolm
Malcolm is a three year old fawn pug with a completely black face. A few months after I got him I noticed wart-like growths on his belly and arm pits. The vet said not to worry they would go away. Some did disappear but others have grown significantly. Also the warts are now appearing on his back. Help! Has anyone had this experience with their pug????
Posted by malcolm's mom on 2008-03-15 at 22:30:20
Wart that turned out to be cancer
I took my dog in for a routine teeth cleaning and had them go ahead and biopsy an area that was crusty on my dog's skin. Turns out just to be a skin gland that went wonky--no cancer there. But, I had them go ahead and remove a wart while they were at it. Turns out, that it was cancer. Take your dog in immediately. It could spread to the lymph nodes and other areas. Don't just assume it's a wart (which is what my vet thought). He had it for a over a year and we were "watching it." It kept growing slowly. When I had them remove it during the teeth cleaning, I felt somewhat guilty since it was more cosmetic in nature according to the vet. I am so glad we were able to catch it in time. My dog is going back in to remove a larger area of the skin to make sure that we got it all.
Posted by Rhonda on 2008-04-01 at 10:59:55
lump on pugs tummy
ive just found a lump on my pugs tummy what could this be
Posted by claire pickering on 2008-09-04 at 15:33:29
Pug warts
My pug had a wart on her hind leg, it turned out to be cancer and went deeper into the tissue that just a surface wart. She is going in again for more wart removal, our vet did a needle biopsy and 2 more are cancerous. We waited the first time, not any more. Get them removed as soon as you can.
Posted by Patrice H on 2008-10-29 at 08:47:38
Pug Mast cell
We have a 6 year old female pug and just had some mast cells removed. While in surgery, they found several small ones elsewhere (one under arm, another on her thigh, in addition to the one on her leg). They all came back as Type I, with exception to one Type II. We followed up with chemo at the specialist, where he discovered 3 more! So we got those removed and will continue chemo. I thought we go them all, but looks like some teeny-tiny others have shown. I don't think i am going to put her through another surgery and will now see what the oncologist says. I just wanted to give Lucy the best shot at getting rid of these, but I think that maybe additional surgeries will not be the best for any of us.
Posted by Jason on 2008-11-01 at 15:06:08
Pug with mast cell tumors
One day I noticed that my pug, Brody had a wart-looking bump on his behind. We also found one on his back leg. We asked the vet about them and he said that they were just skin tags..harmless. We took him back later because it seemed that the "skin tag" grew. I insisted the vet look into this further. Turns out they were mast cell tumors. Brody has had a total of 3 surgeries to remove about 7 of these. The vet has suggested chemo, which is probably the route we will take. One strange thing happened though. We were about to take Brody in for another surgery to get the tumors removed when we noticed that both the tumors shrunk. The doctor decided not to perform the surgery because of this, however he still wants Brody to have the chemo treatment. Does anyone know what affects chemo will have on Brody?
Posted by Meredith LeBleu on 2008-11-09 at 11:26:55
RE: Brody
Lucy is going through chemo and is given a daily dose of prednisone. She is tolerating it ok, but at night she will have some panting and she drinks a lot of water (she always has). Every two weeks she has a chemo IV and has her blood checked between chemos. They are alternating between vinblastine and another drug. She seems to tolerate them well, with no side effects. Dogs seem to take chemo much better than humans, of course they can't tell us what hurts either. I don't think Lucy minds it.
Posted by Jason on 2008-11-10 at 19:45:49
Leg tumor
A month ago I was giving my dog a bath when I notice a lump in his left rear leg like the size of a cherry, he is a14 year american pitbull mix with american bulldog,so I took him to the vet ,because he was having some kind of stroke or sizures while playing and running, so He check his heart and it was ok but he could not check his lungs because my dog was aggresive,so then I show him the lump and He toldme that looks like a tumor and that it should be removed soon but he did not tell me that I should do it right away. I am not working so I could not do it right away,but now it got bigger and I took him back to the vet , and He told me that nothing can be done, and if he amputes his leg he will have to go theraphy and maybe two or three months I will have put to sleep I would like some info about it . if he can be save at a reasonable price thank you
Posted by Gabriel acevedo on 2008-11-22 at 00:12:36
Jake
We just lost our 12 year old dog to skin cancer that spread to the liver. I too was told that a spot on his back was a" harmless skin tag." We had no idea and I would do anything to have him back. Do all of the treatments that you can so you will not go through the loss that we are suffering right now. The pain is unbearable and now we have guilt to go along with it because we had no idea until it was too late! Love and kiss those pets and spoil them rotten!
Posted by Kathy on 2008-11-22 at 10:29:31
concerned
Today I was petting my dog and i came across a lump(sort of like pimple/wort)on my dogs back.It was a greyish color.It sort of seemed to bother him when i touched it so i took him to the vet right away.The wet shaved his fur and then tried to sqeeze it.No puss came out just some blood.He gave him a shot of antibiotics and some antibiotics to take home and he said if its not gone in a week to come back.I dont really feel like he did a thorough check.Should i listen to him or should I go to a different vet?
Posted by steph on 2009-03-16 at 23:26:17
Steph..
I found a similar problem on my dog too.. Yorkie/Chihuahua mix. They did the same for him and he'll be going back soon after taking a week of antibiotics. I'm gonna make sure they check it thoroughly because we can't be too safe.
Posted by Drew on 2009-03-31 at 03:05:11
tumors in boxers
I found a small grape sized mass on my dogs right shoulder.The vet gave him a steroid shot to shrink it. It seems to be working,but will that prevent it from returning?
Posted by Donna on 2009-05-02 at 10:31:50
my dogs health
my female cocker spanial is 13 year old and she has developed 4-5 huge lumps on her breast area which are turning 2 show tissues and started bleeding,please tell us wat r the chances of her recovery and survival ?
Posted by ritika on 2009-05-18 at 12:53:21
cancer
My 14 yr old cocker developed skin cancer on his cheek- it quickly started bleeding and turned black- by that time - he had already had end stage nasal cancer and was dying of diabetes and heart failure. If you see any masses-big -small-or insignificant- take them and get them removed immediately- don't ever wait and see !!!! Cnacer spreads soooo quickly- don't wait ! Go with your instinct- if this was yoru child -would you wait?
Posted by jane on 2009-05-21 at 13:22:36
skin cancer
the black color of my Sheltie's snout is spreading upward his nose. Should I be concerned?
Posted by irene on 2009-05-22 at 16:20:48
tapioca-like skin bumps
my toy poodle has several bumps on her body. These bumps look sorta like piles of tapioca beads stacked up upon each other. If anyone knows what tapioca looks like, they know what I'm talking about.
Posted by Della on 2009-06-03 at 00:01:41
my toy poodles skin bumps
my toy poodle has a bunch of "skin eruptions" that I would classify as a type of skin cancef", but dont know the type I need to know the type in order to notify the owner and to let them know the best course of treatment
Posted by Della on 2009-06-03 at 00:12:41
cocker with glandular cyst on ear
my 15 year old cocker (she's deaf and blind) has a glandular cyst on the inside of her ear. the vet has given us some topical meds to keep infection away, but the cyst is bleeding more frequently and i don't know how to stop it. it doesn't seem to bother her more when it is bleeding, but the smell and mess is terrible.
Posted by karen on 2009-06-16 at 11:28:28
My babe's forehead
i looked at my dog's forehead @ notice some redish puffy spot he won;t let me touch it. someone please tell me what should i do?
Posted by mrsgg on 2009-07-02 at 21:08:39
re: wirehaired pointing griffon
help!! I have the lumpiest dog I've ever known....none of them seem to cause her pain and the Vet checks them and says they're fatty tumors but she's 10 years old now and we started finding these lumps when she was around 6 years old. Now she's coming up lame on her front legs and I can't pinpoint any one area that causes her pain when touched. Also no bulges or lumps on her legs. I am ready to tell the Vet I don't care if they're fatty tumors or not I want them all out of there!!! But I'm concerned about putting her under general anesthesia unnecesarily. Any thoughts? The possibility that her lameness could be bone cancer from what I've been reading is really freaking me out. Thank you all in advance for your feedback.
Posted by anne on 2009-08-11 at 20:21:38
skin cancer
we have two italian greyhounds and they both have skin cancer. the 10 year old girl has had 3 surgeries...I found a great vet in Beverly Hills who was very reasonably priced and only gives them a local anesthetic...but it is worrying because she now has more and more lumps..and now my 5 year old boy has them too. So back to the vet we go..but if you want a good vet to go to that doesn't cost a fortune and knows what they are doing..it's the Beverly Hills Small Animal Hospital on Foothill in Beverly Hills Hope this helps someone.
Posted by kathy marshall on 2009-08-29 at 16:19:17
skin cancer
my dog got a lump on her side. it got bigger over a few weeks so i had it cut off. they took some of the surrounding skin as a matter of course and it came back as cancer. so she is going back for another op. fingers crossed!
Posted by mike on 2009-10-02 at 13:47:08
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