The use of electrochemotherapy to treat an oral mucocutaneous fibrosarcoma in a central bearded dragon (Pogona vitticeps)
2022
Doneley, Robert James Tyson | Spröhnle-Barrera, Cleide Helen | Jones, Emily Enid | Sula, Mee-Ja M. | Allavena, Rachel Elizabeth
Bearded dragons (Pogona vitticeps) are one of the most popular reptile pets globally. As their longevity increases with better care and nutrition, conditions common to many older animals, such as neoplasia, may be increasing in incidence. Many tumours are not amenable to surgical resection and are poorly responsive to systemic chemotherapy. Treatment modalities such as cryosurgery and radiation may achieve a good short-term result, but recurrence is common. Electrochemotherapy (ECT) increases the permeability of tumour cells to many chemotherapeutics such as bleomycin and cisplatin, which would otherwise require high systemic doses to be effective. An adult Bearded dragon was diagnosed with a fibrosarcoma of the rostral maxillary mucocutaneous region, based on an incisional biopsy of the lesion. As surgical resection was considered unlikely to be successful, so ECT combined with cisplatin was used to treat the animal. Mass regression was observed and, 2 years after treatment, it remains in remission with no macroscopic evidence of tumour recurrence. While ECT is a well-accepted modality in veterinary oncology, there have only been a few reports of its use in reptiles. ECT with cisplatin or bleomycin may offer substantial benefit for the treatment of cutaneous tumours in reptiles.
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