Dog diagnosed with bone cancer without biopsy. Is it a misdiagnosis?

Question

April 2018 injury to rear left leg ( no use). No condition change (3wks) brought to vet. X-rays revealed Mass on entire femur. Diagnosis, bone cancer. No biopsies or testing to confirm. Offered pain meds (narcs), refused, requested ibuprofen. Eating, drinking, playful, happy. 1 yr later annual appt. More x-rays. Femur and 1/2 pelvis gone, mass cannot be seen. Vet tests for blastomycosis/histoplasmosis, negative x2. Reverts back 2 cancer. Is a misdiag still possible? Pet's info: Dog | Chihuahua | Male | neutered | 14 years and 8 months old | 7.3 lbs

Jessica Keay, DVM · Accepted Answer

I am so sorry to hear about your dog. My first suspicion would also be cancer and since the bone is now gone, it isn't necessarily that the mass is gone so much as the disease has eaten away all the healthy bone. At this point, I would recommend referral to a specialist who deals in oncology (cancer) or a surgeon. It may be possible to surgically remove the affected leg and then do histopathology on the tissue to get a definitive diagnosis. A needle biopsy may also be a possibility for diagnosis, but it is not a gaurantee that a good sample can be achieved this way.

Dog diagnosed with bone cancer without biopsy. Is it a misdiagnosis?

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