Cannon Valley Veterinary Clinic

Bo Bo

Featured Pet

Bo Bo is a 10 year old yellow Labrador retriever who came to our clinic on January 19, 2000.  Bo Bo had been to another clinic where he was being treated for an undiagnosed illness.  The owners had noticed that Bo Bo was not himself, and was having good and bad days.  His bloodwork showed a high white blood cell count and a low red blood cell count, and his abdomen seemed to "swell" and then regress every few days or so.  He was treated initially with antibiotics which did not seem to help the problem.  The doctors mentioned to the owners that an ultrasound exam would be very helpful to help diagnose Bo Bo's illness.  The owners learned through our clinic newsletter that we have a new ultrasound machine, and scheduled an ultrasound for Bo Bo.  The day Bo Bo arrived at our clinic he was very lethargic and could hardly stand up.  His abdomen was greatly enlarged.  The abdominal ultrasound showed a large mass in his abdomen that appeared to be attached to his spleen.  Also it was clear that his abdomen was filled with large amounts of fluid, most likely blood.  Our doctors suspected a splenic tumor, most likely a type of tumor called a hemangiosarcoma.  We explained to the owners that this tumor causes the type of symptoms Bo Bo was exhibiting, and was also more common in Labradors.  His best option was surgery to try to remove as much of the tumor as possible.  However, surgery was risky in his condition.  The owners decided to go ahead with the surgery, wanting to give Bo Bo every chance possible for recovery.

The next day Bo Bo was given a blood transfusion before surgery as we suspected he may lose a large amount of blood.  In surgery, his abdomen was opened and was completely filled with blood.  A tumor was found on his spleen and the spleen was removed.  We could not see tumors spread into the liver or other organs, however, small tumor growths appeared to be present in the fat throughout the abdomen.  We removed as much as possible, and Bo Bo recovered nicely from the surgery.  Hemangiosarcoma is a very malignant tumor, and typically it has spread to other parts of the body by the time it is diagnosed.  Because of this, even after surgical removal of the tumor many pets only live a few months before succumbing to the cancer.  In Bo Bo's case, he is a miracle dog and a great success story.  He is doing extremely well and the owners have commented that "he acts like a puppy again!"  They are enjoying every day with him and he is living each day to the fullest!

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