Abstract
A 10-year-old male golden retriever was presented with weight loss, anorexia, lethargy and non-productive cough. Thoracic radiography and echocardiography revealed the presence of a 5-cm mass located at the heart base. Abdominal ultrasonography showed multiple mass lesions in the liver and kidneys, suggesting systemic metastasis of the heart base tumor. The dog was treated conservatively, with no improvement in clinical signs, and died 33 days after admission. At necropsy, gray-white and encapsulated mass was found attached to the aortic root, invading part of the left atrial wall. Microscopically, the mass was diagnosed as aortic body tumor occurring at the heart base. The tumor metastasized into the heart, lungs, cranial and tracheobronchial lymph nodes, liver, spleen, pancreas, kidneys, adrenal glands, urinary bladder, and mesenteric lymph nodes. Systemic metastasis of aortic body tumor occurring at the heart base as seen in the present case is rare.
