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Lumps on mammary glands.

Species: Dog
Breed: Dachshund
Age: 8-11 years
Fraya is a rescue we have had for a month. We are not sure of her age, but we think she is 8-10 years old. She was rescued from a breeder and was spayed about a month and a half ago. Last week on Monday we noticed an odd shaped form on her belly by one of her nipples. I mad an appointment for her to see the vet on Friday. By the time of the appointment she had several odd shaped hard lumps all along her left mammary chain and a round lump on her one of her right nipples. The vet wants to do surgery and remove the entire left mammary chain and the lump on the right. We will do xrays before the surgery. Our concern is that more of the hard odd shaped spots are appearing on her. She now has them along her her belly under her spay site and 2 on her right side. She has also developed another round small mass under another nipple on her right side. I am concered with how fast this is all spreading and was curious with out having bloodwork what your opinion of this is. The doctor wants to remove the right side when Fraya heals from the first on her left. My concern is that since it seems to be speading rapidly (within 1 to 1 1/2 weeks) that it may be a very aggressive cancer that is hard to treat. Since we can not remove both mammary chains at once, waiting for her to recover to remove the other side seems like she will be riddle with the cancer by that time. Have you seen cancer spread this fast and what options are there? We want to help but are also not sure of the finacial part of all this as it seems to be rather expensive for the surgery. Any help you can give we be wonderful. How long can a dog live with treatment with this kind of cancer? Thanks.


Online vet, Dr. Marie

Dr. Marie replied:

Oh dear, I am sorry to hear that this is happening with Fraya.

I too am concerned about how quickly this is happening. In my experience, if this is cancer then a rapidly growing and extensive cancer like this will be difficult to cure.

If this were my case I would likely be starting off with some chest xrays. If there is evidence of cancer in the chest then we would be talking about ways to make her comfortable rather than doing surgery.

If the chest is clear then I would consider doing a biopsy with a local anesthetic. This can tell us what the lumps are and if they are cancer, how serious the cancer is.

The one concern with doing this though is that if there is cancer that is spreading that rapidly then by the time we get the biopsy results it may have spread even more. But then, on the other hand, if it is spreading that rapidly then we are not likely to cure her with surgery.

In theory it's possible that an infection could cause growths like this. But, unfortunately it does sound like something cancerous.

Blood tests may give a few hints as to whether this is spreading but will not give us a definitive answer.

You may want to talk to your vet about doing a small biopsy with a local anesthetic and seeing how things go from there.

I really hope everything is ok.


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Disclaimer: Although Dr. Marie is a qualified veterinarian, the information found on this site is not meant to replace the advice of your own veterinarian. AskAVetQuestion.com and Dr. Marie do not accept any responsibility for any loss, damage, injury, death, or disease which may arise from reliance on information contained on this site. Do not use information found on this site for diagnosing or treating your pet. Anything you read here is for information only.

Customer reply:

I just wanted to give you an update about Fraya. After consulting more with our vet on monday, he felt that while this was an aggressive cancer we caught it early enough. The bumps under her spay site were from the spay, we just had not noticed them before. We did the surgery on wednesday and she is doing wonderful. We are havng a hard time keeping her quite. The doctor removed the entire right mammary chain and little Fraya doesn't seem to know anything happened. Thanks for your help and input on this.


Online vet, Dr. Marie

Dr. Marie replied:

Thank you so much for the update. I am so glad to hear that your vet is optimistic that this was caught early enough. And I am very pleased to hear that the new bumps were from her spay incision. This is a perfect example of why online vet visits will never take the place of an in person visit with your veterinarian!!!

I hope all continues to go well!

Dr. Marie.



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Dr. MarieDr. Marie is a veterinarian who practices in a busy animal hospital in Ottawa, Ontario. She created Ask A Vet Question as a resource for good, accurate veterinary advice online. Dr. Marie treats dogs, cats, hamsters, guinea pigs, and rats. She has been a vet since 1999.

Is an online vet visit just as good as a trip to your veterinarian? No! But, many times, asking an online veterinarian a question can help save you money. While Dr. Marie can't officially diagnose your pet or prescribe medications, she can often advise you on whether a vet visit is necessary. You can also ask Dr. Marie for a second opinion on your pet's condition.