To Lynn McIntosh -
 
>There was a message from someone that had their 3-year-old Tessa diagnosed
>with lymphosarcoma today on the FML.  The vet diagnosed with a blood test.
>Could a blood test give an accurate diagnosis?
 
No - I have been campaigning against this for years.  Only in severe cases
of lymphosarcoma are peripheral blood tests of any help, and they still have
to be followed up by a biopsy of a lymph node.
 
>Is weight gain a symptom of lymphosarcoma?
 
No - ferrets with lymphosarcoma, or other tumors, LOSE weight - most of the
body's nutrients are redirected into providing fuel for the rapid division
of tumor cells.
 
>lymph nodes do feel pretty swollen in the shoulder and behind the
>kneecaps, but it also feels that there is extra tissue around the nodes in
>the shoulder area (fat?) and behind kneecaps (fat?).  She's been on the
>antibiotic now for four and 1/2 days, and I don't think there is a change
>(this is explained in my forwarded message below).  What should I do?
 
Let's wait until the baby is weaned - with no symptoms, and a questionable
diagnosis at best, with fat as the main ruleout - I don't think we need to
rush into anything here...
 
>(Dr.  Williams, you said take the whole node, but my vet doesn't want to,
>saying it's part of her defense system against disease.  But would a wedge
>be enough?)
 
A wedge wouldn't be very good - chopping a piece out tends to distort the
architecture of the node - which is often the way a diagnosis is made.  I
promise you - taking out a node won't really affect Claudette's immune
system - the lymphatic system has a lot of redundancy.
 
Bruce Williams, DVM, DACVP              Chief Pathologist, AccuPath
Dept. of Veterinary Pathology               [log in to unmask]
Armed Forces Institute of Pathology
[log in to unmask]
[Posted in FML issue 1499]