Meet Conor:
- Conor arrived at ACCC’s Orlando office with a mass in his neck near the trachea
- He is a 12-year-old hound mix
Referring vet: East Orlando Animal Hospital, Dr. Mason Chandler
Treatment team: Dr. Tammi Ruddle, surgeon
Diagnostic steps: Dr. Chandler aspirated the mass in Conor’s neck and diagnosed it as most likely thyroid cancer. He then did staging with radiographs and bloodwork, which did not find any evidence that the cancer was active anywhere else in Conor’s body.
Treatment plan: Dr. Ruddle performed surgery to remove the tumor and submitted the tumor for biopsy, which confirmed the diagnosis of thyroid adenocarcinoma (cancer). Conor had good prognostic markers in his clinical presentation and on his biopsy report. Chemotherapy was discussed, but with the positive features of Conor’s case, active surveillance was chosen. Monitoring with regular chest radiographs has been recommended.
Results/ongoing care: Conor is still doing great with no evidence that his thyroid has returned. He recently had a new skin cancer, a mast cell tumor, that has been removed with surgery.