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Lumps and Bumps- what to do.

Kismet is a very handsome, rapidly- expanding and slightly ungainly Rottweiler puppy. We have had him as a patient since his first vaccinations and have watched his growth chart and the expression on his owner’s face with a rye smile ever since. He is now five months old and already almost as large as my beloved ‘boys’.

Last week his owner had been grooming him and had noticed a rather ugly- looking lump on his bottom. He wasn’t particularly bothered by it but she felt it warranted a look.

When I saw him a couple of days later the mass was larger and had become crusty. Kismet still couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about and just seemed a little puzzled as to why everyone kept groping his thigh! I felt that there were quite a few possible causes for the mass but I didn’t like the speed with which it was growing or the fact that it was so crusty.

We admitted Kismet the next day and removed the mass. It was really quite straightforward surgery and simply involved cutting round the mass in an ellipse and closing the underlying layers and the skin. However, the one thing I did want to be sure of was a good margin of normal tissue round the mass. Tumours are not particularly common at all in young dogs but there are a couple of types that can be very aggressive locally and even some that are malignant and can spread internally.

In view of this I went deeper and wider than if I was just removing something like a fatty lump or a cyst. We sent the mass away to be examined at a pathology laboratory. This is often useful in cases such as this. Not only do you discover exactly what the mass is but also whether it is aggressive and how likely it is to recur, either where the original one was or elsewhere on the body. The other important thing the laboratory can tell you is whether they feel you have a good, clear margin of normal tissue round the edge. This is because in some types of tumour they can appear to have an edge but under the microscope there may be cells advancing already that are not visible to the naked eye.

The most likely cause of Kismet’s lump was a type of skin tumour called a histiocytoma. This sounds awful but is actually one of the commonest skin tumours we see in dogs. They are also very often in young dogs and also seem to like growing on the head, ears and legs. They rarely cause problems and do not spread internally. They will also sometimes spontaneously go away without any intervention at all. They usually look red and a little angry and will occasionally bleed if they are in a position where they are likely to get traumatised.

In fact, Badger had one when he was about two years old. It appeared right on the edge of his ear and grew steadily for a week, at which time I decided it was time to come off to be on the safe side. As a result Badger now has a very distinctive wedge missing from one edge of his ear. He doesn’t seem to have any hang- ups about it and we like to think it just adds to his individuality!

We quickly got the laboratory report back and found that Kismet’s mass was indeed a histiocytoma. There was a good margin of tissue and no reason to worry about future problems. Indeed, with a very speedy recovery from the surgery, apart from a rather embarrassing bare bottom, Kismet was none the wiser that there had ever been a problem.

So why remove them if they are nothing to worry about and how can you tell good from bad? Often we remove these masses for peace of mind. They are very common but there is always the exception to the rule and you will get an occasional mass that looks like a histiocytoma but turns out to be highly malignant. With anaesthetics being so safe these days it just doesn’t seem worth the risk of missing something.

Of course there are many different things that can cause lumps and bumps on the skin. These range from tumours to lipomas or fatty lumps, from abscesses to cysts, ‘warts’, foreign bodies such as grass seeds and even bacterial infection.

There are some general rules to follow with all lumps and bumps. If the mass is smooth, round, well- defined, non- painful, non- ulcerated and slow- growing it is generally benign and nothing to worry about. If, on the other hand it is fast- growing, bleeds, has an irregular shape or is painful then you should seek advice rapidly. These are obviously general guidelines and we can always be surprised by something. If your dog has developed a lump and you are unsure then always ask your vet. It may be a very quick visit and you may feel silly to fuss but it is better to be safe than sorry and your vet won’t mind at all putting your mind to rest.

If it makes you feel any better, I know for a fact that in one case two vets and a film- crew of four all thought that a dog had a very aggressive- looking tumour on his ear. It was the dog’s owner, also a vet, who picked the dried piece of boiled sweet off the dog’s ear later that day and asked if that was what they were all so concerned about! If you’re worried about a lump, just ask!

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