Neuroblastoma of the adrenal gland in a ferret

A 5-year-old castrated male ferret was referred for hind limb paresis and subcutaneous mass at the lumber area. Based on clinical examination including computed tomography, extension of the mass to the abdominal cavity was confirmed. An exploratory laparotomy revealed that the mass at the cranial area of the left kidney extended dorsally to the vertebra and to the subcutis. The excised mass was histologically diagnosed as a medullary tumor of the adrenal gland, and some neoplastic cells were beta III-tubulin-, doublecortin- and neurofilament-positive. Based on these findings, the tumor was considered to be a neuroblastoma.