Detection of cancerous tumours via ultrasound imaging would be of great benefit to patients and practitioners alike. A study carried out by Feliciano MAR et al., ‘Ultrasonography methods for predicting malignancy in canine mammary tumors’ published in PLoS One in 2017 May 22;12(5):e0178143 looks at this possibility in dogs, assessing the suitability of four different ultrasound techniques for this purpose (B-mode, Doppler, contrast-enhanced ultrasosonography [CEUS] and Acoustic Radiation Force Impulse [ARFI] elastography).

Mammary masses in 153 females were examined using ultrasound imaging before being histopathologically confirmed as either benign or malignant. Statistical analysis and varying criteria were used to distinguish between the two different types of masses and the different types of ultrasound applications used. Three hundred masses were assessed, with the majority were identified as being malignant (246 versus 54 benign masses). The sensitivity and specificity of each technique was calculated, with results showing that ARFI elastography returned the highest results, with 94.7% and 97.2% sensitivity and specificity respectively. In contrast, B-mode ultrasonography returned the lowest values for both sensitivity and specificity at 67.9% and 67.6% respectively, whilst CEUS only had 16.7% specificity – the lowest value of all the ultrasound types tested.

As ARFI elastography was discovered to be an appropriate method for imaging mammary masses, it follows that practitioners would find it advantageous to use this technique in conditions/suspected conditions of canine oncology.  This conclusion may not come as a huge surprise to ultrasound experts, as ARFI is an application that has links to cancer detection and observation, with soft tissue being able to be imaged (Wikipedia).

If cancer diagnosis/examination is able to be carried out using ultrasound imaging, this allows the bypassing of invasive procedures that may otherwise need to be carried out whilst results can be returned quickly.

To see what scanners we stock for use with our canine companions, please take a look at our website vetimagesolutions.co.uk

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28542533