When is a lipoma not a lipoma?

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Fine-needle aspiration (FNA).
Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) of a mass. Image source: BSAVA ’09 Congress Times.

We recently had a case where a freely mobile, soft mass on the ventral abdomen, which had been present for a number of years, had started to get larger.

We carried out a fine-needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy, and I fully expected this to confirm the presence of a lipoma (a benign fatty tumour common in dogs).

However, I was really surprised when the cytology revealed the presence of a mast cell tumour, with a surgical procedure to follow.

My tip would be that it is definitely worthwhile checking out those seemingly innocuous “lipomas” with FNAs.


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