XVIIL— A CASE OF SARCOMATOUS DISEASE. 



During the past month you have had opportunities of following in 

 hospital the progress of a rare form of sarcomatous disease in the horse, 

 distinguished by its clinical characters from the varieties hitherto 

 described in animals. In our patient development of the disease was 

 indicated by the appearance of numerous tumours of varying size in 

 the subcutaneous connective tissue and muscular interstices, without 

 the skin or lymphatic glands being invaded, as is the rule in sarcoma, 

 and, until the last few days at least, without grave symptoms pointing 

 to the existence of visceral new growths having occurred. 



Sarcomata have a marked preference for the connective tissue. 

 They may occur wherever this tissue exists, i.e. in all organs. The 

 majority have a well-marked tendency to generalisation. This process, 

 which occurs by the venous channels, is often very irregular. Secon- 

 dary tumours sometimes develop in large numbers in almost all the 

 viscera; sometimes they are comparatively rare. The lung is most 

 frequently invaded when infection is general, and usually shows the 

 greatest number of growths. Cases occur, however, where sarcomata 

 appear to extend systematically, affecting almost exclusively the bones, 

 skin, or subcutaneous connective tissue, and producing particular 

 varieties of disease, distinguished by special clinical and anatomical 

 pathological characters. 



Thirty years ago Kaposi described, under the name of cutaneous 

 sarcoma, a human disease characterised by circumscribed swellings of 

 the skin, raised patches, and flattened, isolated, or confluent swellings, 

 the structure of which was that of sarcoma. A similar aftection occurs 

 in animals. M. Trasbot described it in the article on Sarcoma in the 

 Didionnaivc dc Mcdccinc Vctcvinairc, under the title " Varietes Ver- 

 ruqueuses."' In solipeds, says M. Trasbot, this variety is confined to 

 surfaces where the skin is fine — around the eyes, nose, mouth, ears, 

 sheath, and mammary gland, and on the inner surfaces of the limbs ; 

 sometimes it invades the abdominal, thoracic, and inferior cervical 

 regions. The tumours may assume one of two forms, appearing either 

 as warts adherent to and projecting, more or less, above the surface of 

 the skin, or as globular masses lodged in tne subcutaneous connective 



