My schnauzer has paw melanoma. Is it malignant? What's the prognosis?

Yes, I would think this is a reasonable treatment plan for Benson. Given that he has a past history of malignant melanoma, it is possible that he could have another tumor, so it the antibiotics don't help,I would consider amputating the tail to be safe. Hope this helps, Marion!

This is a mass (tumor), however, a wart is also a tumor. So the fact that something is a tumor does not necessarily mean that it is malignant. It could also be a benign mass. I would actually consult with her oncologist, as he will have seen many different tumors and will likely have an idea what it could be before doing a fine needle aspirate to determine the type, It will also be important to see this in connection with her melanoma and its prognosis, to determine whether this mass can be left alone due to the life expectancy of your dog, or to see whether this may be a metastasis or unrelated. Unfortunately this mass is in a tricky spot, so removal will be easy, but closing the skin defect will be hard as there is not so much skin available. This is why it is important to have it examined before it gets too big and the skin cannot be closed anymore due to having to remove too much skin with the mass. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please take the time to mark this question as helpful or not as it helps us to improve on the quality of our answers to other pet owners. Thank you kindly!

survival rates are just statistics. If you have a 95% survival rate for x amount of years, there will still be 5% of those who will not survive that time. At the end of the day is is either you live long or you don't. That said, the pathology report is actually very favorable 1) the surgeon managed to remove the tumor in its entirety with good margins (well into the healthy tissue) 2) The cells of the tumor are well differentiated: this means it was slow growing and usually does not metastasise 3) considering your dog is already 6 years old,, and a large breed, the natural life expectancy is maybe another 6 to 8 years maximum. The fact that the tumor was removed in its entirety with good margins, no lymph nodes were involved and no lung metastases present means that it is likely not going to recur. If you regularly check your dog's paws and skin and have any suspicious findings examined right away, you can catch any recurrences early and they can be dealt with. Overall I would not worry too much about survival rate. I think Abby has a good chance for a long happy and healthy life. Nothing is certain with a living being, but the chances are good!

A melanoma would be pretty unlikely since this lesion does not look raised - cutaneous (skin) melanomas in the dog are usually growths that protrude from the skin. Cutaneous melanomas in dogs also tend to be benign. Based on you pictures I think this could be a focal area of skin infection, but a healing wound would also be possible.

Dogs do get malignant nail bed tumors. This area does look angry and it certainly could be a malignant tumor. If you wish to be cautious you can get a second opinion from a veterinary oncologist or another veterinarian. It's difficult to get a good sample from this area so your veterinarian is correct to recommend a toe amputation. Since Hailey is young there is a chance that this is an infection also. You could try a course of antibiotics for a couple of weeks to see if it heals. If the mass continues to enlarge then I would definitely remove the toe as if it's a malignant melanoma they do spread and it could go into her lungs which is a life threatening condition. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Hailey.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This could be a benign or malignant growth. There is no way of knowing what it is just based on its appearance. Common tumors in this region include melanomas, squamous cell carcinomas, mast cell tumors and soft tissue sarcomas, among others. This is often differentiated by a test called a fine needle aspirate (FNA) which is a pain free, inexpensive and easy procedure which in most cases will help reach a diagnosis. Sometimes a biopsy is needed for a definitive diagnosis. I recommend that you have him evaluated by your veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. I am really hoping for something benign. Good luck and have a good night!

Hello. The lab that analyzed Jake's sample is a very reputable one & one all veterinarians are familiar with. The Microscopic analysis very clearly states that the abnormal cells contained melanin making the diagnosis quite clear. This is definitely not squamous cell carcinoma. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.