Millie, a 14-year-old Jack Russell terrier with a bladder mass. 

Bladder operations are common in small animals to remove bladder stones. There are also some more complex surgeries of the bladder that can benefit from a Specialist Surgeon.

 

Millie had a bladder mass (tumour or cancer) discovered when she was having a scan for another problem. Although she was an older dog, she was in good health. A CT scan had shown the mass was very close to one of the ureters, the tubes that carry urine from the kidneys to the bladder and, although the mass was large, it was attached to a relatively smaller area of the bladder.  Surgery was planned to remove the mass and, hopefully to preserve the ureter and kidney, although removal of these if necessary was included in her surgical plan. Her bladder was opened, and a small flexible catheter was passed up the ureter to identify and protect it. Fortunately, there was enough space between the edge of the mass and the ureter to remove the mass with an appropriate amount of normal tissue around it to reduce the chance of regrowth and to close the bladder without damaging the ureter. 

 

This is her owner’s story:

“Millie is a 13-year-old Jack Russell, who is normally full of life and has had really good health. She had an episode of pneumonia and a collapsed lung, and two months later we found a lump on her side that was removed. Following a CT scan to ensure the lump had been removed successfully we discovered quite a large mass attached to her bladder. We had to consider whether we should put her through major surgery to remove this mass. We were referred to Alison who very kindly agreed to take on Millie's case as although she is classed as an elderly dog, we felt she still had a lot of life to live. Alison successfully removed the mass and as Millie turns 14 in a couple of weeks, we can look forward to celebrating another birthday with her. Alison was amazing communicating with us at every stage, and we are so grateful for the surgery and giving Millie more time. Thank you.”

 

One of the photos shows Millie celebrating her 14th birthday a few weeks later.