FREE SHIPPING over $40
OVER 10000 FIVE-STAR REVIEWS
5% OFF ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS
100% HAPPINESS GUARANTEE
Analyze Diet
0
Equine veterinary journal2015; 48(3); 280-284; doi: 10.1111/evj.12421

A database survey of equine tumours in the United Kingdom.

Abstract: Survey data on equine tumours are sparse compared with other species and may have changed over time. Objective: To describe the most frequently diagnosed equine tumours recorded by a diagnostic pathology laboratory over 29 years, to identify background factors associated with tumour type, and to identify any changes in the tumours diagnosed or the background of cases submitted during the study period. Methods: Observational; cross-sectional analysis of records of a diagnostic pathology laboratory. Methods: The records of all neoplastic equine histology submissions to the University of Bristol (January 1982-December 2010) were accessed from a database, and a list of diagnoses compiled. The 6 most commonly diagnosed tumour types were analysed using logistic regression to identify background factors associated with tumour type. The overall population of equine tumour submissions and the relative frequency of diagnosis of the most common tumour types were compared between decades. Results: There were 964 cases included. The most frequently diagnosed tumours were: sarcoid (24% cases), squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) (19%), lymphoma (14%), melanoma (6%), gonadal stromal tumour (6%) and mast cell tumour (MCT) (4%). With sarcoid, Thoroughbred/Thoroughbred cross and gelding as reference categories: increasing age was significantly associated with the odds of each of the other tumour types, mares were at reduced risk of SCC, Arab/Arab cross had a higher risk of MCT, Cob/Cob cross had an increased risk of SCC and MCT, and ponies had an increased risk of melanoma. The mean age of submissions increased in each successive decade and the breed composition became broader. Sarcoids and lymphoma formed a smaller proportion of diagnoses in later decades. Conclusions: The types of tumours submitted to this laboratory have changed over the last 3 decades. Current data inform clinicians and researchers and further studies are warranted to follow trends.
© 2015 EVJ Ltd.
Get Full Text
Publication Date: 2015-03-19 PubMed ID: 25594351DOI: 10.1111/evj.12421Google Scholar: Lookup
The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
LinkedInCopy
  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The study surveyed information about horses’ tumors in the UK for almost three decades. Horses most commonly had six types of cancer, with some breeds being more susceptible than others. The breed and age of infected horses evolved over the study period.

Research Objective and Methodology

  • The study aimed to describe the most commonly identified horse tumors in the UK, and the related background factors, using data collated over almost three decades.
  • The research design was observational and used cross-sectional analysis of the records of a diagnostic pathology laboratory.
  • All the records of equine histology submissions to the University of Bristol between January 1982 and December 2010 involving neoplastic cases were accessed and employed for this study.
  • The six most frequently diagnosed types of horse tumor were investigated for any potential association with underlying factors such as breed and sex of the animal.
  • A comparison was undertaken of the overall number of equine tumor cases and the frequency of the common tumor diagnoses across the decades.

Results

  • The study included 964 cases. The most frequently diagnosed tumors were sarcoid (24%), squamous cell carcinoma (19%), lymphoma (14%), melanoma (6%), gonadal stromal tumor (6%), and mast cell tumor (4%).
  • Analysis showed increased age was significantly linked to the risk of having any of these tumor types, except for sarcoid.
  • Mares showed a lower risk of squamous cell carcinoma, while Arab-cross horses had a higher predisposition to mast cell tumors.
  • Cob-cross horses showed a greater susceptibility to both squamous cell carcinoma and mast cell tumors, and ponies had a higher risk of melanoma.
  • The average age of horses submitted for diagnosis increased with each successive decade, as did the variety of horse breeds.
  • Sarcoids and lymphomas proportionately decreased in the diagnoses over time.

Conclusions

  • The types of tumors diagnosed at this laboratory changed over the nearly three decades of study.
  • This database and study provide valuable information to veterinary clinicians and researchers to inform their work.
  • Continued studies are advised to recognize and track trends in equine tumor occurrence for more effective detection, treatment, and prevention strategies.

Cite This Article

APA
Knowles EJ, Tremaine WH, Pearson GR, Mair TS. (2015). A database survey of equine tumours in the United Kingdom. Equine Vet J, 48(3), 280-284. https://doi.org/10.1111/evj.12421

Publication

Equine veterinary journal
ISSN: 2042-3306
NlmUniqueID: 0173320
Country: United States
Language: English
Volume: 48
Issue: 3
Pages: 280-284

Researcher Affiliations

Knowles, E J
  • Bell Equine Veterinary Clinic, Mereworth, UK.
Tremaine, W H
  • Department of Clinical Veterinary Science, University of Bristol, Langford, UK.
Pearson, G R
  • Department of Clinical Veterinary Science, University of Bristol, Langford, UK.
Mair, T S
  • Bell Equine Veterinary Clinic, Mereworth, UK.

MeSH Terms

  • Animals
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Databases, Factual
  • Female
  • Horse Diseases / diagnosis
  • Horse Diseases / epidemiology
  • Horse Diseases / pathology
  • Horses
  • Male
  • Neoplasms / diagnosis
  • Neoplasms / epidemiology
  • Neoplasms / pathology
  • Neoplasms / veterinary
  • Risk Factors
  • United Kingdom / epidemiology

Citations

This article has been cited 17 times.
  1. Derar D, Ali A, Al-Sobayil F, Refaai W. Granulosa cell tumor in Arabian mares: prevalence, risk factors, clinical and histopathological findings and outcome of surgical removal. Front Vet Sci 2025;12:1689782.
    doi: 10.3389/fvets.2025.1689782pubmed: 41321570google scholar: lookup
  2. Vychodilova L, Plasil M, Futas J, Kopecka A, Molinkova D, Wijacki T, Jahn P, Knoll A, Horin P. Genetic susceptibility to sarcoid in Arabian horses: associations with MHC class II and compound MHC class I/KLRA genotypes. Vet Res Commun 2025 May 1;49(3):184.
    doi: 10.1007/s11259-025-10748-2pubmed: 40310488google scholar: lookup
  3. Labens R, Saba C, Williams J, Hollis A, Ensink J, Jose-Cunilleras E, Jordana-Garcia M, Bergvall K, Ruppin M, Condon F, Spelta C, Elce Y, De Ridder T, Morton J, McGee C, Reddell P. Intratumoural tigilanol tiglate in the multicentre treatment of equine sarcoids and cutaneous melanomas. Equine Vet J 2026 Jan;58(1):89-104.
    doi: 10.1111/evj.14502pubmed: 40170619google scholar: lookup
  4. Beermann A, Clottu O, Reif M, Biegel U, Unger L, Koch C. A randomized placebo-controlled double-blinded study comparing oral and subcutaneous administration of mistletoe extract for the treatment of equine sarcoid disease. J Vet Intern Med 2024 May-Jun;38(3):1815-1824.
    doi: 10.1111/jvim.17052pubmed: 38529853google scholar: lookup
  5. Paraschou G, Xue C, Egan R, Bolfa P. Multicentric lymphoma in a donkey with intestinal and bone marrow involvement. BMC Vet Res 2024 Feb 15;20(1):57.
    doi: 10.1186/s12917-024-03903-5pubmed: 38360691google scholar: lookup
  6. Karalus W, Subharat S, Orbell G, Vaatstra B, Munday JS. Equine sarcoids: A clinicopathologic study of 49 cases, with mitotic count and clinical type predictive of recurrence. Vet Pathol 2024 May;61(3):357-365.
    doi: 10.1177/03009858231209408pubmed: 37937724google scholar: lookup
  7. Wensley FM, Berryhill EH, Magdesian KG. Association of globulin concentrations with prognosis in horses with lymphoma. Front Vet Sci 2022;9:1086010.
    doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.1086010pubmed: 36699338google scholar: lookup
  8. Tura G, Brunetti B, Brigandì E, Rinnovati R, Sarli G, Avallone G, Muscatello LV, La Ragione RM, Durham AE, Bacci B. Expression of Cell-Cycle Regulatory Proteins pRb, Cyclin D1, and p53 Is Not Associated with Recurrence Rates of Equine Sarcoids. Vet Sci 2022 Sep 1;9(9).
    doi: 10.3390/vetsci9090474pubmed: 36136690google scholar: lookup
  9. Wang L, Unger L, Sharif H, Eriksson S, Gerber V, Rönnberg H. Molecular characterization of equine thymidine kinase 1 and preliminary evaluation of its suitability as a serum biomarker for equine lymphoma. BMC Mol Cell Biol 2021 Dec 14;22(1):59.
    doi: 10.1186/s12860-021-00399-xpubmed: 34906077google scholar: lookup
  10. Moore C, Stefanovski D, Luethy D. Clinical performance of a commercially available thymidine kinase 1 assay for diagnosis of lymphoma in 42 hospitalized horses (2017-2020). J Vet Intern Med 2021 Sep;35(5):2495-2499.
    doi: 10.1111/jvim.16239pubmed: 34359096google scholar: lookup
  11. Unger L, Abril C, Gerber V, Jagannathan V, Koch C, Hamza E. Diagnostic potential of three serum microRNAs as biomarkers for equine sarcoid disease in horses and donkeys. J Vet Intern Med 2021 Jan;35(1):610-619.
    doi: 10.1111/jvim.16027pubmed: 33415768google scholar: lookup
  12. Crausaz M, Launois T, Smith-Fleming K, McCoy AM, Knickelbein KE, Bellone RR. DDB2 Genetic Risk Factor for Ocular Squamous Cell Carcinoma Identified in Three Additional Horse Breeds. Genes (Basel) 2020 Dec 5;11(12).
    doi: 10.3390/genes11121460pubmed: 33291392google scholar: lookup
  13. Arthurs C, Suarez-Bonnet A, Willis C, Xie B, Machulla N, Mair TS, Cao K, Millar M, Thrasivoulou C, Priestnall SL, Ahmed A. Equine penile squamous cell carcinoma: expression of biomarker proteins and EcPV2. Sci Rep 2020 May 12;10(1):7863.
    doi: 10.1038/s41598-020-64014-3pubmed: 32398763google scholar: lookup
  14. Singer-Berk MH, Knickelbein KE, Lounsberry ZT, Crausaz M, Vig S, Joshi N, Britton M, Settles ML, Reilly CM, Bentley E, Nunnery C, Dwyer A, Lassaline ME, Bellone RR. Additional Evidence for DDB2 T338M as a Genetic Risk Factor for Ocular Squamous Cell Carcinoma in Horses. Int J Genomics 2019;2019:3610965.
    doi: 10.1155/2019/3610965pubmed: 31637255google scholar: lookup
  15. Castillo JM, Tse MPY, Dockweiler JC, Cheong SH, de Amorim MD. Bilateral granulosa cell tumor in a cycling mare. Can Vet J 2019 May;60(5):480-484.
    pubmed: 31080259
  16. Luethy D, Frimberger AE, Bedenice D, Byrne BS, Groover ES, Gardner RB, Lewis T, MacDonald VS, Proctor-Brown L, Tomlinson JE, Rassnick KM, Johnson AL. Retrospective evaluation of clinical outcome after chemotherapy for lymphoma in 15 equids (1991-2017). J Vet Intern Med 2019 Mar;33(2):953-960.
    doi: 10.1111/jvim.15411pubmed: 30636061google scholar: lookup
  17. van der Weyden L, Patton EE, Wood GA, Foote AK, Brenn T, Arends MJ, Adams DJ. Cross-species models of human melanoma. J Pathol 2016 Jan;238(2):152-65.
    doi: 10.1002/path.4632pubmed: 26354726google scholar: lookup
Subscribe to our newsletter
Join 99,824 horse owners like you who receive our email updates on horse health and nutrition.