Message Number: YG1404 | New FHL Archives Search
From: Bruce Williams, DVM
Date: 2001-03-17 23:07:00 UTC
Subject: Re: Re; splenomegaly

> Oh yeah what other tests should I ask a vet to do just to start
with (i
> realize if she gets worse or if this continues on to get a biopsy
of her
> spleen, etc)... besides a cbc...is there anything else I should get
just to
> start off with. I don't want to rush in there so fast and do all
sorts of
> invasive tests on her.

A splenic aspirate is a possibility, if it is read by a pathologist
who knows about ferret spleens. It is truly not an invasive test -
cells from the spleen are aspirated by a needle inserted through the
body wall, put on a slide, and stained. For the possibility of
lymphoma, it is certainly more sensitive than a CBC, but less than a
splenic biopsy.


With kindest regards,

Bruce H. Williams, DVM, DACVP
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