Louis-Philippe de Lorimier, DVM, DACVIM (oncology)

Biopsy and histopathology remains the gold standard diagnostic test for many conditions and for nearly all tumors and cancers. When performing this test, it is important to know what answers to look for, in order to obtain as much critical information as possible that may eventually impact the prognosis and the treatment planning.

It can be estimated that more than half of tumor-bearing pets suffer cancer-related pain. Quality of life and key physiological functions are negatively impacted by pain, and treating it is a priority. Whether cancer pain is confirmed, suspected, or expected to occur, efforts should be spent to treat it effectively.

Head and neck tumors are relatively common in aging cats. Understanding the differential diagnoses in this anatomic area is crucial as the diagnostic and therapeutic approaches may vary. This lecture will discuss feline oral tumors, sinonasal tumors, iris melanoma, Hodgkin's-like lymphoma, salivary gland tumors, tumors of the ear canal, and skin tumors.

The biggest problem to overcome before treating pain in veterinary medicine is properly identifying the pain. Our patients cannot tell us what they're feeling using intelligible words, or by describing their symptoms. We therefore need other means to determine that the patient is experiencing pain, and to plan an appropriate treatment.

Canine lymphoma has long been regarded and addressed as a single disease entity, while human lymphomas are classified in numerous classes and subclasses, each with a distinct presentation, prognosis, and accepted therapy.Indolent, or low-grade, lymphomas constitute a unique subgroup of lymphomas that often may behave differently than the archetypical high-grade canine multicentric lymphomas.

Hemangiosarcoma (HSA) is a highly malignant cancer originating from vascular endothelial cells. More frequent in dogs than in any other domestic species, with a reported prevalence of 2 % of all canine tumors, it is associated with a high fatality rate. Hemangiosarcoma typically affects older dogs, averaging 10 years of age at diagnosis, and a strong sex overrepresentation has not been identified.

Canine proliferative histiocytic disorders (PHD) include nonneoplastic or nonmalignant conditions such as the benign cutaneous histiocytoma of young dogs or the cutaneous and systemic histiocytoses (reactive histiocytic diseases), and malignant proliferations including malignant fibrous histiocytoma, splenic fibrohistiocytic nodules, and histiocytic sarcoma (localized, disseminated, hemophagocytic).

Certain cases of cancer may respond well to conservative analgesic therapy initially but eventually require multimodal analgesia.

The biggest problem to overcome before treating pain in veterinary medicine is properly identifying the pain.

It can be estimated that more than half of tumor-bearing pets suffer cancer-related pain.

Pain ranges in prevalence from 15 to 90% among human cancer patients, with an incidence and severity that parallels disease progression.

Cancer remains one of the most common serious ailments of aging pets. However, better diagnostic capabilities and improved therapeutic options now often translate into enhanced quality of life and longer survival.