Hi again - well, we went back to the vet's today to have Buster's stitches
removed.  No problem, however, he did nip the vet - "Take that, you big
meanie!!" oops.  Anyways, I got the biopsy information from the vet and here
are the results.  The first part is the more basic stuff and the second part
is the more medical, high-tech stuff.
 
Diagnosis: MAMMARY ADENOCARCINOMA
 
Comments: Mammary adenocarcinomas are relatively rare in ferrets and there
is little published information on their biological behaviour.  A single
case report of a malignant tumour is reported several years ago.  We are
therefore unable to offer any accurate prognosis.  The tumour is relatively
well differentiated which, in most species, suggests a relatively benign
growth habit.  Exactly the opposite is true in the cat.
 
Description: The mammary tumour is a well differentiated mammary
adenocarcinoma.  It is a multilobular expansive but apparently not
infiltrative epithelial tumour composed of small nests of fibrous connective
tissue but desmoplasia is not obvious.  The cells are relatively well
diffentiated and show approximately one per high power field.  The resident
mammary tissue in the surrounding tissue was compressed and pushed aside by
this mass.
 
Okay, now the second sentence of the description I find pretty confusing
because of the detail they go into describing what it *isn't*.  Makes me
wonder if there's a grammar error in there somewhere.  I will clarify this
with my vet but we'll leave it for now.  Does anyone out there know about a
case of this type of cancer in ferrets??  It seems so rare - I know that
just because there is only one documented case does not mean there haven't
been others, but it makes me worry even more because I have no idea what to
expect.  I did unfortunately find another growth like this one on his other
side around his nipple - smaller but it came up fast.  It wasn't noticed two
and a half weeks ago when my vet examined him before his surgery.  I don't
know what to do - I can't afford tons of vet bills and I can't let him
suffer either.  I don't know if putting him through the stress of surgery
would be worse in the long run or what.  If it's spreading as quickly as it
seems to be, I might be fighting a losing battle.  I need some advice
QUICK!!!!!  Any help would be greatly appreciated!!  Thanks for listening.
 
George, Jasper and the Tribe (especially Buster)
 
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Georgette Peters                            Nothing is fool-proof to a
Steacie Science Library                     sufficiently talented fool.
York University
4700 Keele Street                                     *****
North York, Ontario                                 *********
M3J 1P3                                               *****
(416)736-5084
                                             Dook, dook, bjork, bjork!
e-mail - [log in to unmask]                        - Swedish Ferret
 
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[Posted in FML issue 2181]