Lump on neck

[Moo]

Hi all. I found a lump on Rumble's neck today, on one side, which is causing my terrible anxiety that it might be lymphoma. He's eating and drinking as normal, but has been a little lethargic, which is adding to my worries. I'll be booking him into the next available vet appointment, as there is no way I can get him seen on a Sunday where I live unfortunately. 

Does anyone have advice as to what this could possibly be, if not lymphoma? 

Could you also please pass on any "greyhound educational materials" about their physiology that I can have on hand for my vet? I'm hyper paranoid that my vet may not be greyhound savvy and want to prevent any medical mistakes where possible (I have little choice of where he can be seen, I literally live on an island so greyhound savvy vets aren't an option). 

 

Thanks

[organistswife]

My understanding is that lymphoma tend to be benign.

We've had numerous removed from our dogs.

However do get it checked asap.

[MerseyGrey]

I suspect this a tough one to answer without being able to feel it. I don’t know much about greyhound physiology, but I know a very little bit about lymph node pathology. Firstly, are you certain that it’s a lymph node - could it be a cyst? Could it be explained by an insect bite? Secondly, even if it is a lymph node there are lots of reasons why it could be enlarged, infection being the biggest culprit. Something like sore teeth or swollen gums could result in enlarged lymph nodes in the throat. Does he have any other lumps in his throat/armpits/groins?

So, try not to worry too much - I know it’s easy for me to say that on a sofa miles away but it won’t change anything for you. Book him in to see a vet as early as you can, any vet should be able to help and hopefully put your mind at ease. And if it’s close to the surface it will be easy to take a biopsy from (a biopsy is better than an aspirate as far as I’m aware because in lymphoma the pathologist looks not just at cell population but also tissue architecture, which is not maintained in an aspirate. A needle core biopsy can be taken easily). This will be sent to a pathology centre where they will look at many of these - and the pathologist won’t need to be a greyhound specialist.

I’m not sure about the previous assertion that lymphomas are benign - organistswife might be thinking about lipomas, which are tumours of fat and which are benign, and this is another thing that Rumble’s lump might be. Best wishes Moo, I hope Rumble is ok.

[DocsDoctor]

Agree with MerseyGrey, make an appointment to get it checked out next week, because there are lots of things it could be, and try not to worry too much meanwhile!

One thing she didn't mention was thyroid glands - he will have two of these, symmetrically placed either side of his throat. I'm sorry to say that when  my old greyhound, Ken, developed a lump on one of these it turned out to be a thyroid tumour. These are not always bad news, some are benign but again something you want to get checked out (usually via a needle biopsy) swiftly. Ken's alas was an aggressive one and though we whipped it off as swiftly as possible, the cancer had already got into his bloodstream and we  only had a few more months together.

I find UK vets are usually in fact quite greyhound-savvy - apart from anything else they are usually exposed to a fair few in vet school - but you will find some handy greyhound-specific health information here

 

[cleptogrey]

Vet appointment.

Your vet will also check all of his lymph nodes- under front legs, groin, rear legs etc. Most likely a go e needle aspiration will be done and sent off to CSU. That is the major research center where the cells can be identified and a free consult w/ an oncologist. If it is lymphoma every dog reacts to treatment differently. Mine had such an aggressive case that after a week of prednisone he was starting to really fail. The monthly treatment after steroids was not expensive and has very few side effects. For the life of me I can't  remember the name of the drug.(I wonder why)

BUT it can be Lyme. Ask about a tick titers, best is PCR test. Quickest is snap and he can go on antibiotics instantly.

He can have a fatty tumor or cyst. So your vet needs to examine and test. Just tell the receptionist your fear lymphoma due to the location and she/He should get u in quickly.  Vets just operate differently now. If you get in in a 3 or 4 day time span your doing well. No reason to run to an e vet. 

Good luck, sending hugs.

[greysmom]

3 hours ago, organistswife said:

My understanding is that lymphoma tend to be benign.

We've had numerous removed from our dogs.

However do get it checked asap.

I think this poster means "lipoma" (which is a benign fatty lump), not Lymphoma (which is cancer).

This could be so many, many things that to jump right to any form of cancer is a little premature. 

How big is the lump? 

Is it hard or squishy? 

Can you move it around - that is, is it mainly in the top layers of skin or is it attached to the underneath muscle? 

Can you get your fingers all the way around it? 

Is it visible on top of the skin when you part his fur?

What my vet does when we find a new lump is to extract some cells (fine needle aspiration) and just take a look at them right there in the office to see what they look like.  A vet should be able to tell the difference between healthy cells and non-healthy cells.  If it's just a fatty lump, then there's no issues - just watch it and keep track of any changes, no need for removal.  If the cells look odd then they can be sent in to a lab to be identified.  Even if it does turn out to be cancer, a discreet lump can usually be removed fairly easily.

If it seems to be growing quickly, shave/cut off some of the hair and draw a line around the lump with a permanent marker so you can keep track of it, as *that* is not a good sign.  But one of mine has lipomas all over her - they pop up rather quickly, but then just sit there.  Our vet keeps a body map of all Lilly's lumps and bumps so she can check them at her annual exams.

[Moo]

Vet saw him this morning and wants him back tomorrow to do a biopsy (or whatever the word they used was) under sedation. Last night I found another lump in his mouth, so they felt that they'd get a more accurate reading which would be less stressful for him if he was sedated. They're also running a full blood test for him, so hopefully we'll get some answers soon enough. 

[Hubcitypam]

One of mine got a lump from an infected salivary glad. 

[MerseyGrey]

 

[Houndtime]

Keeping your boy in good thoughts.

[PatricksMom]

I've lost a grey to lymphoma, and if it's any comfort, it was on both sides, which I think is the norm. I know it's scary, but there are a number of much less scary possibilities (cyst, dental abscess, fatty tumor, etc.). 

[BatterseaBrindl]

 

[EllenEveBaz]

Sending good thoughts to you and your boy.

[tbhounds]

On 4/18/2021 at 7:51 AM, organistswife said:

My understanding is that lymphoma tend to be benign.

We've had numerous removed from our dogs.

However do get it checked asap.

I think you mean Lipoma-big difference.

[Shannon]

Hi Moo, have the results come back yet?  

[Moo]

Hi everyone, sorry for not updating, been a hell of a week due to family and dog health scares!

So basically his mouth lump came back as harmless, and the neck lump inconclusive. They can't say for sure what either was or is, but we have to keep an eye on both and see if anything changes, and if so, back to the vet for more tests. He seems well enough in himself aside from his poo, but he's always had dodgy poo since the day I got him. 

So all in all I paid around £350 to be told I have a lumpy dog.  I'm just glad it wasn't lymphoma, and that he's ok!

[Patsy]

Guess lumpy is way better than some of the alternatives.