Canine mammary cancer is the uncontrolled growth of cells in a dog's mammary glands. The first and only sign of canine mammary cancer is often an unknown mass on the dog's belly. However, this can also be a sign of other conditions, such as a harmless cyst. Fine needle aspiration is the use of a fine-gauge needle to remove tissue or liquid from an area for further testing. Although fine needle aspiration is not the last word on mammary cancer diagnosis, veterinarians use it to determine if further testing is required.
Instructions
1. Recognize the symptoms of mammary cancer in your dog. The most common sign is a large mass under the skin of the abdomen. Although you may not be able to see the mass, you will be able to feel it if you examine it with your hands. The mass may be firm or soft, movable or static.
2. Contact your dog's veterinarian and explain about the unknown growth. He will physically examine the dog and evaluate the mass. A mass can be several things, so he may want to test for the presence of cancer.
3. The veterinarian will swab the area with alcohol to sterilize it. Then he will use an empty syringe attached to a sterile needle to collect tissue from the mass.
4. Immediately after withdrawing the needle from the mass, the veterinarian will transfer tissue and fluid to clean glass slides. The slides are sent to a testing lab to look for the presence of cancer or other conditions, such as cysts.
Tags: mammary cancer, conditions such, from mass, further testing, needle aspiration, other conditions, other conditions such
