Message Number: FHL1494 | New FHL Archives Search
From: "Sukie Crandall"
Date: 2007-06-14 19:53:10 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] Re: possible juvenile lymphoma?
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com

> I have had 2 ferrets with Juvinile Lymphoma. One was diagnosed by a
> blood test the other by a biopsy from a tissue sample.


You can NOT diagnose ANY form of lymphoma by blood test.

The results can indicate that lymphoma is among the likely things to look at, but the same
results can be found with a strong systemic infection, and DIM is even going to give more
pronounced results.

Many years ago one prominent ferret vet announced prematurely that blood tests could be
diagnostic for lymphoma, but ferret pathology experts such as Dr. Bruce Williams pointed
out that was not the case, and further research supported their assertion. Sadly, that too
rapid jump to announcement has followed the person who made it and also has been help
by people who are unaware of later work.

It's easy to make postulations but unfortunately, it is also easy to have people not know
that hypotheses are still UNproven and that even those hypotheses which look most
promising often don't up when they are decently tested. That is why they are just
hypotheses... :-)

Anyway, that idea fell flat on its face and you can't diagnose lymphoma of any type with a
blood test. Furthermore, even when a blood test indicates that there is reason to include
lymphoma about the suspicions you can't tell the TYPE from such little data as the blood
would give with current tests.




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