Related Experiment Videos
Cardiac tumors in dogs: 1982-1995
1Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Iowa State University, Ames 50011-1250, USA.
Insights
Canine cardiac tumors, particularly hemangiosarcoma, are rare but often malignant. Neutering appears to increase the risk in both male and female dogs, with spayed females facing the highest risk.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Medicine
- Oncology
- Canine Health
Background:
- Cardiac tumors are uncommon in dogs, with an incidence of 0.19% in a large population.
- Hemangiosarcoma (HSA) is the predominant cardiac tumor, significantly more frequent than other types like aortic body tumors.
- Primary heart tumors are more common than metastatic tumors in dogs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the incidence and types of cardiac tumors in dogs.
- To investigate the influence of age, sex, neutering status, and breed on cardiac tumor risk.
- To analyze the biologic behavior and malignancy of canine cardiac tumors.
Main Methods:
- A retrospective search of the Veterinary Medical Database from 1982 to 1995.
- Analysis of 1,383 canine cardiac tumor cases from a population of 729,265 dogs.
- Histologic data review for tumor classification and risk factor assessment.
Main Results:
- Hemangiosarcoma (HSA) was the most frequent cardiac tumor, outnumbering the second most common tumor by nearly tenfold.
- Cardiac tumors were most prevalent in dogs aged 7-15 years, with no increased frequency in very old dogs.
- Spayed females exhibited a significantly higher relative risk (>4 times) for cardiac tumors compared to intact females, and HSA risk was >5 times greater.
- Neutered males also showed a slightly increased risk compared to intact males.
- Certain breeds demonstrated a higher or lower than average risk for cardiac tumors.
Conclusions:
- Cardiac tumors in dogs, predominantly HSA, are often malignant and associated with specific age groups.
- Neutering appears to be a risk factor for developing cardiac tumors in both sexes, particularly in spayed females.
- Breed predisposition exists for cardiac tumors in dogs, necessitating further investigation into genetic or environmental factors.
Abstract:
A Veterinary Medical Database search from 1982 to 1995 identified 1,383 dogs with tumors of the heart from a total population of 729,265 dogs (0.19% incidence). Hemangiosarcoma (HSA) was the most common cardiac tumor identified. In the subset of dogs with specific histologic diagnoses, the number with HSA was almost 10-fold that of the 2nd most common tumor, aortic body tumor. Primary heart tumors were more common than cardiac metastases. When biologic behavior was noted, most heart tumors were classified as malignant. Cardiac tumors (excluding lymphoma) occurred most often in dogs between the ages of 7 and 15 years. In very old dogs (>15 years), the frequency of cardiac tumors was the same or lower than that of the youngest age group. Tumors occurred with similar frequency in males and females, but the relative risk for spayed females was >4 times that for intact females. For HSA, spayed females had >5 times greater relative risk than did intact females. The risk for castrated males was slightly greater than that for intact males, which had 2.4 times the relative risk of intact females. Thus, neutering appeared to increase the risk of cardiac tumor in both sexes. Intact females were least likely to develop a cardiac tumor, whereas spayed females were most likely to develop a tumor. Twelve breeds had greater than average risk of developing a cardiac tumor, whereas 17 had lower risk.