Dr. Phil Zeltzman’s Blog

Nino, a sweet 11 year old pit bull, had recently developed a cough.

Initially, he was coughing from time to time. Then the coughing became more frequent. His owner took him in to see his family vet. Chest X-rays revealed a shocking finding. Nino had a mass in his left lung. Statistically speaking, this was very likely to be cancer.

The X-rays above show the heart and the mass (with a broken line around it to show it better).

Nino’s owner says: “We were in disbelief and shock. He has always been a very active dog.”

The vet recommended an ultrasound of the chest to collect more information regarding the mass. According to the ultrasound, it measured about 8 by 9 cm (3 by 4 inches), so roughly about the size of your fist.

The client continues: “We immediately left in search of a surgeon’s opinion as we knew this would be a dangerous and heavy procedure.”

“By searching for recommended pet surgeons in Pennsylvania, we found your name and website, along with previous stories and reviews.”

Nino’s owner reached out to me to discuss surgery (lung lobectomy). Could this mass be removed?

Nino’s owner said: “After several consultations with you, we were hopeful but never more terrified. The level of risk explained was almost too much to handle for any loving pet parent. There was no choice other than to perform the surgery. You get a small sense of hope when you know you’re doing the only thing possible to help him. But the doom and gloom prevail. We dreaded the surgery date until it finally came.”

We worked quickly to get Nino’s surgery on our schedule.

FAIR WARNING: THE FOLLOWING PICTURES ARE GRAPHIC.

Once we got into surgery, there was one tiny little problem: the mass was much larger than the ultrasound suggested!

It was about 15 cm (or 6 inches) in diameter, or about the size of a large grapefruit!

REMINDER: THE FOLLOWING PICTURES ARE NOT FOR THE FAINT OF HEART.

Nino’s owner and I had made a deal before surgery. If anything was different from what we thought, or if the risk was higher than expected, I would call him to brainstorm.

Of course, I kept my promise. We talked in the middle of the open-chest surgery to discuss my findings. I said I was 90% sure I could remove the mass safely. The owner was committed to doing what was best for Nino, so he gave the OK to continue on with surgery.

We went back to surgery. I will spare my sensitive readers of the details of the surgery, obviously it was somewhat delicate…

Meanwhile, the emotional roller coaster goes on: “Once we got your call that we could have a successful outcome with a 90% “belief,” we were extremely excited. A huge weight felt like it was lifted, even though the hard work hadn’t started yet. We continued to do nothing but pray and try to be positive through what will always be one the worst times of our lives yet.”

In order to remove the entire mass, it appeared that we would have to sacrifice the entire left lung, not just the one lobe as planned (removing a whole lung is called a pneumonectomy). In the end, the tumor was removed – safely. Pfew! Mission accomplished.

(Quick crash course in anatomy if this makes no sense. We have 2 lungs, left and right. Each one is made of several parts or “lung lobes”. So instead of removing just the lobe with the mass, we removed all lobes on the left, i.e. the entire left lung. The right lung of course stayed in place.)

FINAL WARNING: THE NEXT PICTURE IS VERY GRAPHIC !!!

Once the left lung was removed, we needed a way to remove air and fluid from that side of the chest. This is done with a device called a chest tube. It usually only stays in place for a few days after surgery, and can be removed once there is no more air and not too much fluid left.

Nino recovered from surgery and anesthesia smoothly.

That’s when I called the owner again to confirm that surgery was over and Nino was safe – for now.

He later commented: “The news that the mass was removed and he was in recovery was simply a miracle. Nothing else compares to that feeling. Never been more thankful in my life.”

Nino was transferred to the local emergency clinic for overnight care, so the nurses could monitor Nino’s comfort and breathing, and take care of the chest tube.

Nino did so well overnight, that the chest tube was removed the very next day. He was discharged shortly after that. He recovered uneventfully at home.

The next day, his owner sent this amazing update: “He’s been resting and taking all medications without issue. We’ve had no whining/crying at all, and his appetite is great.”

In addition: “Nino has not coughed once. He hasn’t moved much either, but he used to cough just sitting there. So that’s great!

We love having him back home. Nothing is better. And we were so glad to get him back sooner than expected.

His breathing also seems to be much smoother and normal paced.”

About a week later, the biopsy results came back and confirmed the suspicion of lung cancer (pulmonary carcinoma).

Two weeks after surgery, another great update: “Nino is still doing great. He is eating, drinking and relieving himself regularly with no issue. (…)

He has more energy and strength than expected, so our biggest battle lately is keeping him from running or playing.

His breathing seems to be slower and more controlled than it was before his surgery and he seems more comfortable in general. We have had a couple random coughs but nothing alarming.”

In case you’re wondering: dogs, like people, can live with only one lung. Nino may not be able to run a marathon, but this amazing 11 year old trooper should be able to live a happy, comfortable life as a family pet.

As of this writing, it’s been over 2 months since surgery and the patient is doing well.

Nino’s super dedicated owner concludes: “Thanks to you and your team, we have a second shot at life. This has been a nightmare since our first visit with our vet. I had never been so scared of something and so scared of trusting anyone. You and your team saved our dog’s life. There has been no greater moment in our lives.”

Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS, CVJ, Fear Free Certified

Cartier, a 12 year old, 10 pound Shih Tzu, was originally seen by her family vet for a walnut-sized mass on the right side of her chest. It looked like a simple skin mass.

But she soon developed some rather troubling symptoms that had her owners seriously worried. She became lethargic, had difficulty breathing, and even passed out on occasion. What was happening?

Cartier was taken back to her family vet, where X-rays and blood were taken to find out what was going on. The blood work was normal, but shockingly, X-rays revealed that Cartier’s skin mass extended deep into her chest. It was so large, that it crossed to the other side of the chest!

The X-ray below shows the skin mass (green arrow), the chest mass (red arrow) and the heart (blue arrow).

A cat scan of the chest was then performed to better understand what was going on inside the chest, and to make sure the mass had not spread anywhere. There was only one mass (between the colored arrows) but it was almost three times the size of her heart! This explained her symptoms. The only option to help Cartier was to remove the mass.

So I was called in to perform the surgery. On X-rays and on the cat scan, the mass appeared to involve a single rib, but that meant that several ribs would have to be removed in order to successfully remove the mass.

A total of 3 ribs had to be removed, along with the mass, without damaging the heart, the lungs, or any other vital structure. And remember, Cartier only weighed 10 lbs…

By the time we got done, the defect in the chest wall was so big, that it was not possible to put the remaining ribs back together. So the defect was reconstructed with nylon mesh in order to close the chest cavity.

Next, air from her chest had to be removed to allow her to breathe on her own once anesthesia was over. So we used a special plastic drain called a chest tube. Surgery was delicate, but it went well and Cartier bounced back remarkably quickly for an older lady. This is a video of her, walking around the day after surgery (chest tube still in place).

The chest tube was removed a few days after surgery and she went home safely.

The mass was sent to the lab to be biopsied. One week later, the results came back as bone cancer (osteosarcoma). This was one of the 2 most likely diagnoses. The other most likely possibility was cartilage cancer (chondrosarcoma).

One month after surgery, Cartier’s owners were happy to report that she had more energy, ran around, had bright eyes, and seemed to be back to normal. Her personality had come back, she had a hop in her step, seemed much more comfortable and no longer struggled to breathe.

Twelve year old Cartier now had a new lease on life.

Her owners said: “we couldn’t have asked for better results.”

Addendum:

I am thrilled to report that as of July 2019, Cartier, the now 13 year old, is still doing well.

This is 7 months after surgery.

Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS, CVJ, Fear Free Certified