Clinical, diagnostic, and pathologic features and surgical outcomes of combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma in dogs: 14 cases (2009-2021)

Abstract

Abstract OBJECTIVE To describe the clinical, diagnostic, and pathological features and postoperative prognosis of canine combined hepatocellular-cholangiocarcinoma (cHCC-CCA). ANIMALS 14 privately owned dogs that underwent surgical treatment. PROCEDURES The medical records, including signalment, clinical signs, blood test, urine analysis, computed tomography (CT) findings, intraoperative findings, and pathological findings, were retrospectively reviewed in the dogs with cHCC-CCA. RESULTS Of 306 dogs that underwent surgical removal of hepatic masses, 14 dogs (4.6%) were pathologically confirmed to have cHCC-CCA. Median age and body weight were 11.3 years and 7.3 kg, respectively. There were no specific clinicopathological findings for cHCC-CCA. CT revealed a massive hepatic mass in all dogs and the inclusion of cyst-like lesions within the mass in 13 dogs. Intrahepatic metastases were found at time of surgery in 2 dogs (14.3%). Of the residual 12 dogs, 1 dog showed postoperative formation of intrahepatic nodules suggestive of metastases and another had intrahepatic and pulmonary nodules and a forelimb skin mass, suggesting postoperative metastases. The median survival time of the patients with cHCC-CCA was 700 days (range, 10 to 869 days) after surgery. CLINICAL RELEVANCE To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to describe the clinical, diagnostic, and pathological features and postoperative prognosis of canine cHCC-CCA. The clinical and diagnostic features of canine cHCC-CCA might be more similar to those of HCC rather than to those of CCA, but the preoperative diagnosis differentiating between HCC and cHCC-CCA was challenging. Our study suggests that the postoperative prognosis of canine patients with cHCC-CCA is similar to that of dogs with HCC.