Veterinary educational video (Dr. Lera Clone) about testicular tumors in dogs using a case (Oreo). Covers the three common tumor types (seminoma, Leydig cell tumor, Sertoli cell tumor), risk factors (notably cryptorchidism — ~13.66× increased risk), presentation on physical exam (asymmetry, firmness), diagnostic options (palpation, fine-needle aspirate cytology with ~88–95% diagnostic yield, scrotal ultrasound, definitive histopathology after surgical removal), prevalence estimates (reported range ~1%–27%; necropsy series ~16%–27%), breeds commonly affected (boxers, German shepherds, Maltese, miniature schnauzers), typical age (often ~10 years, though case dog Oreo is ~6), treatment (castration ± scrotal removal when involved), staging prior to surgery (bloodwork, EKG, thoracic radiographs), metastasis risk (~6%–11%, commonly to regional lymph nodes), and generally good prognosis after removal.
Questions this video answers
Seminoma; Leydig cell tumor; Sertoli cell tumor.
Approximately 13.66 times increased likelihood.
About 88% to 95% diagnostic yield, depending on tumor type.
Studies reported prevalence anywhere from ~1% up to ~27%; necropsy series found ~16%–27%.
Boxers, German Shepherds, Maltese, and miniature schnauzers.
Chapters
Hey, guys, My name is Dr. Lehrer. Today I am here with Oreo. Oreo actually came in for physical exam part of his anules, but we found some abnormal testicles on him. So the topic of today is going to be testicular tumors. Stay tuned, and we'll get a hold of those bad boys shortly. All right, so testicular tumors, as you guys can notice, Oreo is not here because, as you guys noticed on the intro, Oreo was panting, shaking. And so we try to go ahead and minimize the amount of stress patients experience. If they are not relaxed, then we try to put them back in a setting that's more calming for them. That being said, so we're going to be talking about testicular tumors. There are three kinds of the three most common testicular tumors is a seminoma, a Leydig cell tumor, and a Sertoli cell tumor. There are other tumors that can potentially happen. They are much more rare, but those are just the three most common ones that we will typically see. Now, like I said in the intro, Oriole was here today not because mom noticed that it had abnormal testicles, but rather because I was doing a physical exam. And when I did my physical exam, I went ahead and palpated his testicles and realized that there was something off. So usually tumors are going to be in the testicles, of course. And one of the things to be aware of is if the testicles, which I've mentioned in one of my other videos, the Crypt Orchid video, if the testicles are not in the scrotum, then there is a 13.66 times more likelihood of the patients having testicular tumors versus if they are in the scrotum. So that's something to be aware of. And one of the reasons why I really push for patients, if they have a cryptorchid testicle or torque testicle that has not dropped into the scrotal sac to have it removed as quickly as possible so we can reduce the chances of them developing any strobal tumors down the road. Next thing, how do we diagnose it? Pretty much the way that I diagnosed it today, just on physical exam. So if you notice that your veterinarian is copying a feel on your dog's testicles, it's for professional reasons. Hopefully what we are palpating is we are palpating for symmetry. So the testicle should pretty much be the same size. The other thing that we are looking for is we are looking for the consistency of the testicles, I guess. And so one testicle in Oreo's case was very firm, while the other testicle was kind of soft and, and smaller and so not symmetrical at all. The next thing that typically we would do is it's a big jump, but typically we just go ahead and we remove the testicles and then we send that off for histopathology. If we have clients that are more resistant to going ahead and removing the testicles, then one of the things that we could potentially do is we could go ahead and do what's called a fine needle aspirate and send off that sample for cytology. That'll usually give us a diagnosis about 88 to 95% of the time, depending on what kind of tumor type it might be. An ultrasound can also be used to go ahead and help get an idea if it is a testicular tumor versus like an abscess or something like that. But it won't necessarily give you the diagnosis of what kind of testicular tumor it is. That being said, prevalence wise, there are studies that range anywhere from as little as 1% prevalence up to 27% prevalence there. I think there were two large case studies where they had dogs that they did necropsies on. So that's like an autopsy, but on dogs. And they found that I think it was between 16 to 27% of male dogs that had their testicles examined after passing away had evidence of testicular tumors. So just to give an idea of what the actual presence in is, the breeds that are most common are going to be boxers, German shepherds, Maltese, and miniature schnauzers, which, if you guys didn't know, that's what Oreo is. So that, you know, he's kind of almost like one of the poster children for testicular tumors. Usually though, that we will see this in dogs that are older, closer to 10. And Oriole is only about 6, based on our medical records. So he's a little bit outside of that bell curve in regards to his age. And it's showing, potentially showing up. We won't have a confirmatory diagnosis until we remove those testicles. So the other thing to be aware of is that the tumors are not always in both testicles. Sometimes it's in one testicle, sometimes it's in both testicles. So that's something to be aware of as well. It is possible for your dog to have multiple kinds of tumors in their testicles. So when we send off the tissue or histopathology, sometimes they will find a mixed testicular tumor, which will have a couple of different cell lines. So sometimes like a stratoli cell tumor and a seminoma or stuff like that, just to give you an idea. Lastly, the treatment and prognosis, the treatment of choice is typically get them out. If there is any abnormal tissue on the scrotum, then we typically want to remove the scrotum as well. Or if it feels like the testicles are attached to the scrotum, then we would want to go ahead and remove the scrotum. That being said, I want to say there's a metastasis rate of as low as maybe 6% and maybe as high as 11%. So usually when we are taking these patients to surgery, we'll do our blood work, we'll do our ekg, and then we'll do X rays on our chest to make sure that there is no evidence metastasis to the lungs. The most common place for these tumors to metastasize to is typically the regional lymph nodes. So that's something to keep in mind. Your veterinarian, when they're doing the physical exam, they'll go ahead and they'll check the lymph nodes to see if there's any change in them either compared to all the lymph nodes or compared to the symmetrical lymph node when you are checking one side versus the other. And last, usually if you get them out, if you get these testicles out with the tumors, the patients usually have a very good prognosis and they seem to live a normal life. If you guys have any questions about this video, please leave them in the comment box. If you found this video helpful, please give us a thumbs up. If you know somebody who needs to watch it, please share it with them. And if you guys just really like these kinds of videos, please subscribe. It helps us to go ahead and reach out to other people and get us pushed up in the YouTube algorithm. So thanks for watching, be safe and have a blessed day. It.
