Dog lump bleeding and swelling after biopsy: Could it be an MCT?

Hi, thank you for getting in touch with us. I totally understand your concerns, From the picture you are showing us, I would say that the bruising is excessive considering the small procedure. However mast cell tumours release substances that cause a lot of inflammation in the surrounding tissues, so this is what could have occurred to Sandy. I would recommend to have Sandy reassessed, if she is other ways well in herself, eating and drinking, tail wagging and comfortable you can make an appointment for tomorrow with your regular vets. If you are worried that she is unhappy, please take her in today. It would be best for you to see your own vet for continuity of care, because they have all Sandy's records and they did the procedure 36 hrs ago. Having said this, if you are not happy about the way your vets handle your concerns, I would go and see another vet. It would be interesting to know what medications is Sandy on. If you want to apply something just on the bruised area, Arnica is a natural but powerful ointment that helps a lot with bruising. I would not apply it where the dressing is. You just need to massage it gently so that it gets absorbed into the skin, 2-3 times a day. It is sold at the chemist under the name Arnicare cream. Also Lymph nodes in the area are quite deep, so I am thinking that maybe you are feeling something else ? Good luck, please get in touch if more advice is needed.

Yes, that is fairly normal for a punch biopsy. The opening is usually quite small, but it's a deep wound, so it tends to bleed a lot; especially in certain areas of the body and with certain lesions. I would not be worried right now. Keep it covered and the bleeding will stop soon. The bleeding will not be enough to cause any major damage, so no worries about that. The swelling should go down in the next 2-3 days. If it's past three days and it's still swelling, then it would be worth a recheck by your veterinarian. I hope that helps and Baxter gets better soon.

I would recommend having Lily evaluated by the vet if this mass is getting bigger. any abnormal growth that is changing in size and shape should be assessed to make sure that it is not malignant. A needle aspirate may give your vet enough clues to determine what this is, or they may recommend surgical biopsy or removal. Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

There can be a bit of blood when a biopsy is done, but if the lump itself was filled with blood that can be a cause for concern. Without seeing Rocky in person, I can't say for certain, so as hard as it is, I would wait until the results come back. Hopefully everything is ok!

It is difficult to tell from the picture, but it looks like what you are seeing is a mass. We will commonly see benign masses in young dogs called a histiocytoma which can be itchy. Unfortunately, there isn't any way to determine what a mass it just by looking at it. Your vet can do a simple test called a fine needle aspirate to remove some cells with a needle and look at them under a microscope to determine what the mass is. If it is a histiocytoma, it will go away on its own, but Damon may need some medication to keep it from being itchy. I have attached more information on histiocytomas below. https://www.veterinarypartner.com/Content.plx?P=A&S=0&C=0&A=1676 Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using PetCoach.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Possibilities include mast cell tumor, soft tissue sarcoma, plasmacytoma, carcinoma, something of a benign origin, among many others. It should be something similar or the same as the FNA. Ultimately, the biopsy is what actually provides the definitive diagnosis. Feel free to contact us back once the results are available and we can try to guide you going forward the best we can. Let's keep our fingers crossed that it is something benign. Good luck and have a great day!

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Otis Lee. He will need to see his veterinarian for a procedure known as a fine needle aspirate. The veterinarian will use a small needle to collect a sample of cells to evaluate under the microscope. This will ideally give you a diagnosis for the bump. A histiocytoma is common on the extremities of a young dog. This is a spontaneous growth usually goes away on its own. However, a cancerous mass known as a mast cell tumor has the same outward appearance. In the meantime, place an E-collar on him to prevent any further self-trauma. I hope this information helps!