A case of rapid recurrence of apocrine ductal carcinoma originating from the oral scent gland of a Richardson’s ground squirrel (Urocitellus richardsonii)

Abstract

A 3-year-old female Richardson’s ground squirrel developed a subcutaneous mass at the left oral angle. Seven days after removal of the mass, the mass recurred and metastasized to the cervical lymph node. Histologically, the primary mass was subdivided by fibrous trabeculae into various-sized neoplastic cell lobules showing a solid growth pattern with frequent mitoses and sometimes forming intracytoplasmic lumina. Large to medium-sized lobules formed a central cyst plugged by comedo necrosis. Neoplastic cells showed infiltrative subcutaneous growth. In the recurrent tumor, tubular structures lacking apparent apocrine secretion appeared within the solid growth portion. Neutrophil infiltration was evident within the tubules and intracytoplasmic lumina. Neoplastic cells were diffusely immunopositive for AE1/AE3 pan-cytokeratin (CK) in all lobules and focally positive for CAM5.2 CK in the lobules forming a central cyst and/or tubular structures, but they entirely lacked positivity for the periodic acid Schiff reaction. Ki-67-positive proliferating neoplastic cells were higher in numbers with the recurrent tumor than with the primary tumor. In addition, phosphorylated c-MYC immunoreactivity was observed in neoplastic cell nuclei, distinctly at the portion of invasive growth. Thus, the present case was diagnosed as apocrine ductal carcinoma originating from the oral scent gland, which typically shows highly aggressive biological behavior.