Prevalence
The most common hematopoietic cancer in dogs — roughly 24 per 100,000 dogs annually. Boxers, Golden Retrievers, and Bullmastiffs are over-represented.
Who gets it
Middle-aged to older dogs (median 6–9 years), but any age. Strong breed signal in Goldens (~1 in 8 lifetime risk).
Symptoms to watch for
- Enlarged lymph nodes (under jaw, in front of shoulders, behind knees)
- Lethargy and weight loss
- Decreased appetite
- Increased thirst and urination
- Sometimes vomiting or diarrhea (alimentary form)
How it's diagnosed
- Fine-needle aspirate (FNA) of an enlarged node — usually diagnostic on cytology alone
- Immunophenotyping (PARR, flow) to confirm B-cell vs T-cell — important for prognosis
- Staging: bloodwork, chest radiographs, abdominal ultrasound, bone marrow if cytopenic
- Optional: chemosensitivity assay (ImpriMed) on live cells to predict response
Prognosis ranges
With CHOP chemotherapy, median survival is 10–14 months for B-cell, 6–9 months for T-cell. Without treatment, 4–6 weeks. Long-term remissions (>2 years) occur in ~20% of B-cell cases.
Treatment landscape
Recurrent mutations in this cancer
Frequencies from canine clinico-genomic cohorts. SciRouter Oncology auto-checks every mutation in your dog's report against the OncoKB-aligned database for matched targeted therapies.
Questions to ask your vet
- Is this B-cell or T-cell? Have we done immunophenotyping?
- What stage are we — substage a (asymptomatic) or b (symptomatic)?
- Are we doing CHOP, single-agent, or palliative? Why?
- What's the realistic best- and worst-case timeline?
- Should we run a chemosensitivity assay before choosing protocol?
- When do I bring her back if she's vomiting or refusing food?
Quality-of-life notes
Most dogs on CHOP feel better within 1–2 weeks because the lymph node burden shrinks. Hair loss is rare in dogs. The hardest weeks are weeks 3–8 (myelosuppression nadir).