Sammy's smiling again after op on lump the 'size of a football'
Meet nine-year-old Sammy, who has had surgery to remove a lump the size of a football from his side.
The golden retriever was treated at Leonard Brothers Veterinary Centre in Whitchurch.
Sammy started developing the lump on his left side in 2010. It grew to the size of a football within two years.
Owner David Latham, from Malpas, said: "When he had the lump he couldn't get into his bed properly and struggled on and on."
Louise Brookes, receptionist at the centre, said: "Sammy's concerned owner brought him to see Andy Nelson who tried to discover what it was.
"The results were inconclusive but Andy assumed that it was a lipoma – a harmless soft, fatty lump that grows under the skin.
"Because of the sheer size of the mass Andy thought it would be best to remove it under a general anaesthetic before it got even bigger.
"While removing this mass in theatre, Andy discovered that it was in fact not a lipoma, it was something much more vascular. Andy assumed that it was a soft tissue sarcoma. This is a connective tissue tumour which has unregulated growth.
"After 60 minutes of intense surgery Andy placed an active drain under Sammy's skin to catch any free fluid. Bets were placed guessing the weight of the tumour. Unbelievably, this mass weighed almost 5kg. That is the size of a big cat.
"Andy sent off a section of the mass for histology to find out more and whether it would be likely to reoccur. When the results came back, Andy's suspicions were correct, it was a soft tissue sarcoma. This means that, unfortunately for Sammy, it is likely to slowly regrow over time.
"However, it is unlikely to spread to any other area on the body. Happily though, the lump is off and this means a huge relief for Sammy."
She added: "A few days later Andy removed Sammy's drain. His wounds had healed excellently. Now, three months on, Sammy's owners have already noticed a huge difference in his character, he is so much happier and livelier in himself.
"It was a weight off his shoulders – literally."
Mr Latham added: ""Now the lump's been removed he is full of beans."
