Abstract
In 12 dogs with mast cell tumor (MCT), serum histamine concentrations were measured and evaluated as an indicator to predict prognoses and metastases after surgical excision of the MCT. The dogs with MCT showed higher serum histamine concentrations than eight healthy control dogs. Serum histamine concentrations were also correlated with tumor sizes and clinical stages, which suggested that the measurment of serum histamine concentrations could be useful for monitoring the progression of disease and treatment. Nine dogs with extremly high histamine values survived for shorter times, and the survival time was only 2 to 130 days (the median was 29 days), suggesting that there was a correlation between blood histamine concentrations and prognoses. Blood histamine concentrations after the stimulation with calcium ionophore A23187 were measured to see the degree of histamine release, because these values can reflect the number of mast cells in the peripheral blood. Out of eight dogs with metastases, six dogs had noticeable values of histamine concentrations, but four dogs spparently free of metastases had normal values. These findings indicated that histamine release after stimulation could be a potential indicator of metastasis. In addition, six dogs showing marked histamine release all died within 130 days no matter what treatment they received. In conclusion, measurement of histamine concentrations can provide useful information for treating canine MCT.
