Quantitative index for diagnostic surveillance of neoplasms in dogs

The probability of detecting a neoplasm in dogs with a previous or concurrent tumor may not be the same as the probability of observing a first neoplasm in the general canine population. A population-based index was developed to quantitate the diagnostic surveillance of tumor-bearing and nontumor-bearing dogs. The index was derived from each dog's excess submissions defined as the difference between the number of tissues submitted for microscopic examination during a dog's registration and the number of confirmed neoplasms derived from the submissions. Based on this index, 14.2% of additional tumors diagnosed in dogs already bearing at least one tumor could be attributed to a difference in the excess submission measure of diagnostic surveillance. This difference in diagnostic surveillance was constant over breed, sex, and tumor type.