Can ultrasound diagnose cat lymphoma, or do I need a biopsy?

Question

Dear Doctor: I have the following questions about lymphoma diagnosis: 1. Can ultrasound confirm diagnosis of lymphoma? 2. If not, what tests can confirm diagnosis of lymphoma? 3. Can biopsies through an endoscopy test confirm lymphoma? 4. Why is taking biopsies considered as the gold standard in tissue sampling, and in detecting lymphoma? 5. Sam is a 13-year old Siamese male cat, and has pancreatitis and ileus, the pancreatitis subsides but the ileus persists, what tests, would you suggest

Daniel Fonza, DVM · Accepted Answer

Hi there and thank you for your post. While ultrasound can be quite a values tool in diagnostics, it is unable to diagnose lymphoma on its own. Endoscopy is considered good standard because samples of tissue can be biopsied and then processed at a lab by a pathologist and interpreted at the cellular level, which ultrasound cannot do. I would suggest an ultrasound first if you haven't already and then if no at is not a concern, set up a second opinion with an internal medicine specialist to discuss the next diagnostic steps and treatment options. If lymphoma is confirmed, you may want to consider a consult with an oncologist at that point. Hope that helps and hope Sam feels better soon! Please feel free to contact me with any further questions or concerns you may have.

Can ultrasound diagnose cat lymphoma, or do I need a biopsy?

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