TUMORS 485 



old bitches. This cancer of the mammaries is marked by the following 

 characteristics: It is of slow growth, particularly hard and firm, and has 

 a tendency to remain stationary for a long time. In some regions of the 

 glands we may see a small, hard knot developed, which is not sensitive 

 to pressure and shows no signs of inflammatory action. This enlarge- 

 ment gains slowly and may be accompanied by other knots in the imme- 

 diate neighborhood, which finally unite and form one mass. The carci- 

 noma at this stage is found to be a hard, irregular, circumscribed tumor, 

 and united, as a rule, with smaller masses by a thin cord-like enlargement 

 that lies in the integument. When this enlargement is located very 

 near the skin it shows a peculiar cicatricial contraction, and especially 

 if it is near the teat this may be drawn entirely into the skin. This is 

 quite common. We also observe great distention of the cutaneous 

 veins, which may even be varicosed. As a rule, the enlargement is 

 rarely confined to one, but we may find scattered through the gland 

 numerous lumps or knots of various sizes. We also see in the mammaries 

 of the dog fibromas, chondromas, adenomas, sarcomas, and cysts, but 

 these are much rarer than carcinoma. 



It is hardly possible to confound these tumors of the mammaries 

 \vith inflammation of the lacteal gland. True acute mammitis occurs 

 very rarely in the bitch, and is indicated by a circumscribed, painful, 

 very sensitive reddened swelling of a definite glandular section. The 

 section may undergo complete disintegration, forming an abscess and 

 sloughing, or w^e see chronic inflammation with a formation of knotty 

 lumps, and a peculiar cicatricial contraction. True mammitis must not 

 be confounded with inflammation of the lacteal glands, which may 

 appear in bitches that are nursing and deprived of their young. The 

 swelling disappears in a few days by itself, but it may be hastened by a 

 light diet and saline purgatives. In very rare instances there is a peculiar 

 condition of the lacteal glands that is seen in bitches that have had 

 several litters of pups. About forty-five days after they have been in 

 "heat" we may find a general enlargement and filling up of the entire 

 glands, also the appearance of a thin milk or colostrum in the glands, 

 and every appearance of active lactation. This might lead the prac- 

 titioner to believe that the bitch was in whelp. 



The tendency of carcinoma to become malignant and cause a general 

 infection of the whole body is especially marked in the soft forms of 

 cancer, particularly those having a tendency to ulceration and degenera- 

 tion, while the hard forms, such as above described in cancer of the mam- 

 maries, may remain months and even years after producing no other 

 eff"ect than a gradual enlargement. The process is generally developed 

 in the lymphatic glands, but we may see the appearance of secondary 

 tumor centres which swell up without being accompanied by any pain or 



