A study covering over 50,000 cases of malignant tumors in dogs has allowed scientists to determine the incidence rate among various breeds, ages, and sexes. This is reported by the Spanish veterinary portal Animal’s Health.
According to the publication, cancer is currently one of the leading causes of death in dogs. Approximately 27% of dogs worldwide die from oncological diseases. To determine which breeds are most at risk of developing cancerous tumors, a group of scientists conducted an analysis of data on 54,900 malignant neoplasms in dogs. This information was collected by four Swiss veterinary laboratories from 2008 to 2020 and submitted to the Swiss National Canine Database Amicus.
The results of the study showed that the most commonly affected areas in dogs are the skin (34.6%), soft tissues (20.2%), and mammary glands (14.5%). The average incidence rate was 775 cases per 100,000 dogs per year (for all tumors) and 338 per 100,000 per year (for malignant tumors).
It was also found that females generally suffer from these diseases more often than males, with the peak incidence occurring at the age of 11 years.
Furthermore, the scientists identified the breeds most susceptible to these diseases and indicated which tumors they suffer from most frequently. In particular, melanomas are most often found in Russian Black Terriers, adenocarcinomas in Field Spaniels, mastocytomas in Argentine Danes, lymphomas in Cavalier King Charles Spaniels and Manchester Terriers, osteosarcomas in Landseers, hemangiosarcomas in Belgian Bouvier, gliomas in Bearded Collies and Italian Cane Corso, and the Welsh Sheepdog showed a predisposition to various types of benign and malignant neoplasms.
The highest cancer incidence rate was recorded in Northern Hunting Dogs (8.08), while the lowest rate was observed in Chihuahuas (0.42).
