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Slov Vet Res 2007; 44 (4): 109-14UDC 636.7.09:616.68-006-089:616-073+616-076Case ReportGENERALIZED SYMMETRIC ALOPECIA AND HYPEROESTRO-GENISM ASSOCIATED WITH CONCURRENT LYMPHOMA,SERTOLI CELL TUMOUR AND SEMINOMA IN A SAMOYEDTanja Plavec*, Nataša Tozon, Tina KotnikClinic for Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, Veterinary Faculty, Gerbičeva 60, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia*Corresponding author, E-mail: tanja.plavec@vf.uni-lj.siSummary: A 10-year-old Samoyed with unilateral right cryptorchidism was referred to the Clinic for Small Animal Medicineand Surgery, Veterinary Faculty of Ljubljana University, due to a symmetrical, noninflammatory, mildly pruritic alopecia of6-month duration. It had a history of diarrhoea, which responded to cyclosporine treatment. Lymphoma and testicular neoplasiawere suspected based on ultrasonography and fine needle aspiration cytology. The dog was castrated and splenicand gastric lymph node biopsies were obtained. Histopathology revealed three different tumours: Sertoli cell tumour andseminoma were present in the right inguinal testicle, and B cell lymphoma was present in the spleen and lymph node. Aftertwo months when the peripheral lymph nodes were considerably enlarged and the owners declined chemotherapy, theywere advised to start corticosteroid treatment. Three months after the castration, the hair coat looked normal. Four monthsafter the castration, the dog was euthanized at the owner’s request by the referring veterinarian due to a lymphoma relateddisease.Key words: unilateral cryptorchidism; testicular neoplasms – surgery – chemotherapy; ultrasonography; cytodiagnosis;biopsy, fine-needle; dogsIntroductionNoninflammatory alopecias are quite common indogs and can be congenital, hereditary or acquired.The latter can result from endocrinopathies (e.g. hyperadrenocorticism,hypothyroidism, sexual imbalance),telogen or anagen effluvium, metabolic imbalance (disruptionsin protein or fatty acid metabolism) and idiopathicdisturbances of the hair growth cycle (1).Testicular tumours comprise 4-7% of all tumoursin male dogs (2). They arise either from Sertoli cells(i.e. Sertoli cell tumours), germinal epithelium (i.e.seminoma) or interstitial cells (i.e. Leydig cell tumours)(3), all of which occur with equal prevalence(2, 4). Other primary tumours may also arise, but areextremely rare. Dogs with non-descended testicleshave an increased risk of up to 13.6 fold to developa testicular tumour compared to dogs with descendedtesticles (5). Since right-sided cryptorchidism isReceived: 10 July 2007Accepted for publication: 17 September 2007more common, the right testis is more often affected(4). Multiple tumours within one testis occur in upto 46% of the cases and are also described in macroscopicallynormal testeses (6). Hyperestrogenismoccurs in 25-50% of dogs with Sertoli cell tumourand less frequently with seminomas, and may leadto signs of feminization (7). It can lead to bone marrowhypoplasia with consecutive thrombocytopenia,non-regenerative anaemia and granulocytopenia.Serum testosterone and progesterone concentrationsmay be increased, but usually testosteroneconcentration is low to undetectable (5). As thesechanges may be subtle and are not specific and sensitivechanges, castration with a histopathologicalexamination is still the diagnostic and therapeuticapproach of choice (8). An alternative and perhapsmore sensitive marker for canine Sertoli cell tumouris increased serum inhibin concentration (9).Malignant lymphoma is the most common caninehaemato-lymphatic tumour, most commonlyclassified based on anatomic location, clinical stageor immunophenotype. The multicentric form with
110 T. Plavec, N. Tozon, T. Kotnikperipheral lymphadenopathy is the most commonform, followed by the alimentary, mediastinal andextranodal (kidneys, skin, and brain) forms (10-12).The aetiology of canine lymphoma is unknown, buthypotheses include retroviral infection, exposure toherbicides and magnetic field, chromosomal abnormalitiesand immune dysfunction (13).Case reportA 10-year-old, intact male Samoyed with unilateralright cryptorchidism was presented at theClinic for Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, VeterinaryFaculty of Ljubljana University for an investigationof a symmetric alopecia of 6-month duration.It was currently vaccinated and dewormedand has lately gained weight although water andfood intake seemed unchanged. The dog had a historyof large bowel diarrhoea eight months beforethe presentation at our clinic, which was treatedwith metronidazole and spiramycin for 1 monthwithout obvious improvement. This was followedby cyclosporine treatment for 40 days, which ledto complete recovery, however, dermatologic abnormalitieswere observed. Initially, alopecia waspresent only in the neck region, and later symmetricallyspread to the axillae, abdomen as wellas the inguinal and tail areas. Mild pruritus wasobserved during the disease course. An abdominalultrasound performed by the referring veterinariandid not reveal abnormalities. Serum hormone concentrationswere determined and included free T4(1.1 ng/dl, reference range 0.6 – 3.7), cTSH (0.13 ng/ml reference range
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