From:
AFERRETVET@cs.com
Date: 2001-05-28 15:27:00 UTC
Subject: [Ferret-Health-list] RE: Spleen question
Hi Ulrike,
The spleen you are describing does sound enlarged.
The spleen can be enlarged from several things. The most
common reason is called extramedullary hematopoiesis. This
is a fancy term for the spleen making red blood cells. The second
most common thing is cancer (especially lymphoma). The third
most common thing is called hypersplenism. After these, the list
includes
bacterial infections, viral infections (especially Aleutian
Disease),
heart disease, anemia, etc., etc.
Since you have both enlarged lymph nodes and an enlarged spleen,
it is suspicious for lymphoma. I would recommend a splenic aspirate
or biopsy, and a lymph node aspirate or biopsy. If the aspirates are
normal
then I would do a biopsy of the lymph node(s).
Yes, ferrets do fine after their spleen is removed.
Hope that helps,
Jerry Murray, DVM