Aspirate of a mass in the second lumbar vertebra of a cat
Case Information
A 13 year old female spayed Domestic Shorthair cat was referred to the Neurology Service at Cornell University’s Hospital for Animals with a 4 month history of progressive paraplegia. Initially, the cat had shown signs of hindlimb weakness and pain, which progressed slowly to ambulatory paraparesis with left hindlimb knuckling. The primary veterinarian referred the patient to a neurology specialist, who performed magnetic resonance imaging, which revealed a mass causing lysis on the left side of the second lumbar (L2) vertebral body and severe spinal cord compression. The cat was then referred to Cornell University for additional diagnostic testing.
Physical examination of the cat revealed intact cranial nerve reflexes and normal thoracic limb neurologic function. However, the cat had abnormal postural reactions and proprioceptive deficits in the hindlimbs, which were worse on the left than the right. The cat also demonstrated pain on abdominal palpation. Computerized tomography showed a poorly circumscribed contrast-enhancing mass that extended into the left side of the vertebral canal and caused extradural compression of the right spinal cord. There was mild lysis of the body and pedicle of L2. No major abnormalities were identified in the thorax or abdomen. Routine clinical pathologic testing was not performed on the cat before surgery. An L1-L3 dorsal and L2 left partial hemilaminectomy was performed, which uncovered a pink gelatinous mass on the left side of L2. The mass was surgically resected followed by fixation and stabilization of the right side of the L1-L3 vertebrae. An intra-operative impression smear was prepared and submitted for STAT cytologic analysis. View the provided cytologic images then answer the questions below.
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- What is your cytologic diagnosis?
- What markers could you apply to confirm your diagnosis?
Answers on next page
