Bruce, the pitbull, first saw Dr. Jessica Ottnod, at Oakland Veterinary Referral Services, for a lump on his leg.
His mom, Rachel Grabowski, thought might it be a fatty tumor, but was shocked to learn it was really skin cancer, “I freaked out a little bit. I was worried about every other lump and bump on him. And I still check him every few days.”
Bruce had something called a mast cell tumor.
Dr. Ottnod, a veterinary oncologist, says mast cell is the most common type of skin cancer in dogs, “Mast cell tumors are actually tumors of a type of blood cell, called a mast cell, that’s part of our allergic response.”
Skin cancer is actually common in dogs and cats, and they also get all of the same types we do, even melanoma.
But, Dr. Ottnod says, skin cancers in pets can be a lot trickier to spot, “They can really look like anything. Some of them will look like, sort of, benign fatty masses. Sometimes they’ll look like cysts or warts. Sometimes they’ll be red or inflamed. Sometimes they’ll occur in haired skin; and other times they’ll be alopecic, where there is no hair in the area. ”
So, make sure you check your pets over weekly, looking for any new growths.
“Not just in areas where you would ordinarily pet the dog or cat,” Ottnod says, “But areas like the legs, the limbs, the feet, the underside of the belly, in back of the collar, the face and head, because skin cancers can really occur anywhere.”
Then, show any new or changing growth to your vet, who can do a simple test.
“Any new mass should really be aspirated,” Ottnod says, “That means we take a small needle, place it into the mass, grab a few cells out and take a look at them under the microscope.”
Pet skin cancer is highly treatable with surgery, but it can also be deadly, which is why you have to catch it early, like Bruce’s mom did.
“If you don’t want to go to your vet and spend the money,” Rachel says, “You probably need to write down when you saw it, where it is on your dog and, maybe even, measure it. And check for it growing, becasue you just never know.”
Applying a little sunscreen before they head outdoors, offers pets little preventive protection but, actually, unlike with humans, the sun causes only a very small percentage of pet skin cancers. Pets with lighter coats are most at risk for sun-induced skin cancers.
Sunscreen on the nose, belly and other low hair areas can help, along with keeping them out of the sun during peak hours- 10 AM until 2 PM. Do not use sunscreens with zinc, which can be toxic to pets.
Source: NBC 25 News
