When your dog turns up with a suspicious lump/bump, we all often hit Google to see “what could this be?”. The reality is, there is no possible way to know for certain what it is, without seeing your veterinarian and having the lump assessed. Generally, the best assessment is done by taking a sample of the lump. This is called a Fine Needle Aspirate (FNA), where a small needle with a syringe, suctions a sample of cells directly from the lump/tumor. These are placed on a microscope slide, and a veterinary pathologist then examines the slide under a microscope.
It can take some time to hear back about the results of an FNA, but certainly worthwhile. Best case, the sample comes back as a lipoma. This is a non cancerous (benign) lump that forms due to an overgrowth of fat cells. On the other hand, the sample could come back as something called a Mast Cell Tumor (MCT).
What is a mast cell tumor?
A mast cell is a type of white blood cell that is found in many tissues of the body. Mast cells are allergy cells and play a role in the allergic response. A mast cell tumor (MCT) is a type of malignant (cancerous) tumor consisting of mast cells. Mast cell tumors typically form nodules or masses in the skin but they can also affect other areas of the body, including the spleen, liver, intestine, and bone marrow. MCTs are the most common skin tumor in dogs. Although any breed of dog can get an MCT, they are common in breeds such as the Labrador Retriever, Boxer, Bull Terrier and Boston Terrier.
How are mast cell tumors treated?
An MCT can be treated in a few ways, but the course of action is generally dependent on the “grade” of the MCT. For example, in low-grade MCT’s with no evidence of spread – surgery is the best option, and essentially considered curative (with good margins taken during surgery)! Higher-grade tumors are a bit more challenging, even without evidence of spread. Generally, a combination of surgery and chemotherapy is often recommended. Radiation therapy is another option if the mass is not in a suitable location for surgical removal or if the surgical removal is incomplete (with cancerous cells left behind). Following surgical removal of an MCT, your veterinarian or veterinary oncologist (cancer specialist) may recommend performing an assessment on the removed mass/tissue sample. This provides information on the exact makeup and abnormalities of the tumor and provides valuable information that your veterinarian will use to determine the prognosis (the likely course of the disease) for your dog.
How does this cancer typically progress?
This tumor's behavior is complex and depends on many factors. Typically, when a biopsy sample is examined under a microscope, the pathologist can assess how aggressive the cancer is based on several criteria. The whole tumor is graded from I-III, with Grade I as much less aggressive than Grade III. Higher-grade tumors have a higher tendency to metastasize (spread to other parts of the body). Another classification system is also used to classify MCTs as either high-grade or low-grade, with mean survival time with high-grade tumors being less than four months and more than two years with low-grade tumors.
Chassis’ Story with MCT’s: In 2021, Chassis presented with a mass on her neck. Luckily, the FNA came back confirming this was a fatty tumor, so no action was needed. Labradors are known to get fatty tumors, so I was certainly relieved – but also not surprised.
Fast forward to fall 2023, and she had 2 lumps/masses. I “assumed” they were fatty tumors, but as a precaution we did FNA’s of both to confirm. Sadly, they came back as MCT’s. One low grade and one high grade.My heart sank. How could my old girl have a High Grade MCT? What is her prognosis? What do we do? Being that Chassis is 13.5 years old, I personally felt that chemotherapy and radiation would be much too hard on her body – though I was already working to schedule her in for surgery. While waiting for a surgery date, I researched. And researched, and researched some more. W e waited for 2 weeks for surgery, but in that timeframe, I started Chassis on this natural regimen: 1) Mushroom Powder – Immune Support 2) Quercetin with Bromelain – antioxidant 3) Turmeric – Inflammation
Chassis had her surgery, and the vet removed 3 lumps (they found an additional one in her abdomen while in surgery – so took that too as a precaution). These 3 lumps were sent to the veterinary pathologist to confirm that the vet had taken good enough “margins”, and that the cancer hadn’t spread past the lump itself. We also had the lymph nodes adjacent to the high-grade lump sampled, this was done to ensure the cancer hadn’t spread to Chassis’ lymphatic system. We waited and waited for results. It felt like forever. Then finally, the results came in! Pathologist confirmed 2 lumps were Low Grade, and the one “new one” was just a fat lump. LOW GRADE?! Not high grade?! The relief I felt. The fact that this hadn’t spread, and her lymph nodes were good too was just amazing news! My 13.5 year old girl was cancer free!!!
A few vets at my clinic commented that “this rarely happens” – meaning they were surprised to see an MCT initially stated as High Grade, come back as actually Low Grade. Maybe there was an error with the initial FNA, but I truly believe my quick action to use the natural products calmed the MCT, and reduced it from High Grade, to low grade. This was a tough couple of weeks in our story, but in the end – we got the best news. I share this story to give those who’s dog may have been diagnosed with an MCT a bit of hope. Sure, not every story can be as successful as ours – but I firmly believe the natural products (combined with veterinary medicine) can work wonders.