Canine Lymphoma Symptoms

Canine lymphoma is common in dogs and its symptoms differ according to the affected area. This article explains about canine lymphoma symptoms and its treatment. Read on...

Canine lymphoma is mostly observed in middle-aged golden retrievers. This is a type of dog cancer and its cause is not known. Before taking a look at the canine lymphoma symptoms, let's first know a little about the stages of lymphoma in canines.

Stages of Canine Lymphoma

There are different grades of this disease depending on the location of the affected area. There are mainly four location types, namely: multicentric, mediastinal, gastrointestinal and extranodal. Most of the times, dogs suffer from multicentric lymphoma, wherein the liver, bone marrow or the spleen are affected. While, in mediastinal lymphoma, the thorax and thymus of the dog are affected. As the name suggests, gastrointestinal lymphoma affects the dog's stomach and intestines. Kidneys, central nervous system, heart or eye may be affected due to extranodal lymphoma.

Symptoms of Canine Lymphoma

Different canine lymphoma symptoms are observed in the various breeds of this animal. But, the ones which I have cited below are the most commonly observed ones.

One of the most common symptoms which is observed in almost 80% of the animals suffering from canine lymphoma is the development of lumps. Most of the times, these lumps are painless and develop at the neck, behind the knees, under the groin and on the front paw. The lumps may spread in the internal organs like the liver, pancreas or the bone marrow. These are hard to touch and round in shape.

In the advanced stages, inflammation will be experienced by your dog in the part which is affected by lumps.

Symptoms like fever, fatigue, weakness and loss of appetite are also common during the later stages of the disease. Another lymphoma in dogs symptoms is vomiting which is observed with reduction in the weight of your dog. The weight loss will be rapid and the dog may appear disinterested in meals.

It also affects the skin causing lesions, redness, plaques and nodules on it. The dog might also be troubled with itching. One of the signs of lymphoma in dogs is hair loss.

In later stages, the dog develops shortness of breath along with muffled heart sounds, hypercalcemia and fluid accumulation in the lungs. Inflammation of thymus is also observed in the later stages.

Enlarged lymph nodes also indicate canine lymphoma.

It causes them to drink water more often and thus, also urinate frequently.

Canine Lymphoma Treatment

Take your dog to a veterinary doctor who will examine the dog to check if the dog is suffering from canine lymphoma. The dog is mostly subjected to two tests, viz. urinalysis, where its urine is tested and a blood panel test. The treatment for this disease depends on the location of the tumor and the stage of lymphoma or cancer your dog is suffering from. Chemotherapy is the most suggested treatment for canine lymphoma. Prednisone is also suggested by many veterinary doctors. In very rare cases, the dog might be affected with the side effects of chemotherapy. which include fatigue, loss of appetite, digestive problems, decreased white blood cell count, blood in the urine, etc. For complete cure, the dog should be treated thoroughly for a period of 4 to 6 months. Read more on: lymphoma in dogs.

Without proper treatment, canine lymphoma can be fatal. Hence, make sure that you take your dog to the veterinary doctor as soon as possible, if you observe him suffering from the above canine lymphoma symptoms. If proper care is taken, I am sure all kinds of dog health problems will stay away from your canine.