Gastrointestinal B-lymphoblastic lymphoma in a dog: a case report

Abstract

A four-year-old Bullmastiff weighing 44 kg was presented with a 14-day history of weight loss, vomiting and diarrhoea. Abdominal ultrasonography showed the presence of abdominal lymphadenopathy and thickening of the wall of the descending colon. Esophagogastroduodenoscopy and colonoscopy with biopsy were performed. Histological examination revealed a high-grade lymphoblastic lymphoma, flow cytometric analysis detected malignant cells of the immature B phenotype. PCR for antigen receptor rearrangement confirmed IgH monoclonality pointing together with immunophenotyping to B-cell lymphoma. The dog was treated using a multi-agent chemotherapy protocol. The overall survival time was 487 days. This was an unusual case of primary gastrointestinal B-lymphoblastic lymphoma in a dog with survival equivalent to that of the multicentric form.

Keywords

• canine
• alimentary
• lymphoid neoplasia
• immunophenotyping
• parr
• chemotherapy