From:
Bruce Williams, DVM
Date: 2001-04-18 19:38:00 UTC
Subject: Re: mystery lump on neck
--- In Ferret-Health-list@y..., drodvelt@h... wrote:
> My little girl Lily has a new lump on her neck. Of course I just
> loaned out all of my ferret books yesterday to a co-worker who is
> considering a ferret for his daughter. Now I have nothing to look
> in for answers.
> Lily is about 2 years old and has always been a very healthy
> hyper girl. The last couple of months, though, her bouts of
> hyperness have been less frequent. I attributed it to her "growing
> up," but now I'm not sure that is the only difference. This lump
in
> about half an inch behind her ear. It is about the size of a
pencil
> eraser and moves with the skin. I can't see any sign of a red
> mark like it's an insect bite. It is a very definite lump with no
> signs of anything else abnormal.
> Do her age or its location point to anything in particular? I
> imagine I will have to have it removed and biopsied, but what do
> you think I could be facing here?
Dear Drodvelt:
It is difficult to say especially without even a photo to look at.
The fact that it moves easily with the skin suggests that we are not
dealing with an aggresive malignancy, however there are some low
grade malignancies (especially of smooth muscles from blood vessels)
that can pop up anywhere.
The age and location do not point significantly to any particular
neoplasm - my suggestion is to have it removed at your earliest
convenience.
With kindest regards,
Bruce Williams, DVM