FREE SHIPPING over $40
OVER 9000 FIVE-STAR REVIEWS
5% OFF ALL SUBSCRIPTIONS
100% HAPPINESS GUARANTEE
Analyze Diet
0
Home / Equine Research Bank / Vet Ophthalmol / Electrochemotherapy with bleomycin for bilateral ocular squa...
Veterinary ophthalmology2024; doi: 10.1111/vop.13310

Electrochemotherapy with bleomycin for bilateral ocular squamous cell carcinoma in a horse.

Abstract: To describe the procedure and outcome of electrochemotherapy (ECT) with bleomycin as a first-line treatment for bilateral ocular surface squamous neoplasia (OSSN) in the eye of a horse. Methods: A client-owned 5-year-old Haflinger gelding with limbal-conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma. Methods: During general and local anesthesia, injection of bleomycin in the ocular tumor was followed by electroporation, applied with a 15 mm needle electrode, needles held parallel to the ocular surface. Results: Treatment with ECT resulted in therapeutic electric pulses and complete tumor response with no recurrence during follow-up. Tumor toxicity as a result of treatment was mild, with no adverse effect to normal tissue. Conclusions: In this case of bilateral ocular tumors, staged ECT with bleomycin was shown to be a safe and effective treatment with complete tumor remission and no recurrence during the observation period. The result suggests ECT as a possible treatment in ocular tumors, with further research recommended.
© 2024 American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists.
Get Full Text
Publication Date: 2024-12-16 PubMed ID: 39681541DOI: 10.1111/vop.13310Google 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
  • Case Reports
  • 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.

This paper presents a case study of a horse treated with electrochemotherapy (ECT) and the drug bleomycin for ocular squamous cell carcinoma (eye tumours) in both eyes. The treatment was found to be safe and effective, eliminating the tumours and showing no signs of recurrence during the follow-up period.

Introduction and Background

  • This research paper focuses on presenting a case study where electrochemotherapy (ECT) has been used in combination with the drug bleomycin to treat a horse with ocular squamous cell carcinoma.
  • Ocular squamous cell carcinoma is a type of cancer that affects the eye. In this specific case, the horse was suffering from the disease in both of its eyes.

Methods

  • The horse, a 5-year-old Haflinger gelding, was put under both general and local anesthesia before the procedure was carried out.
  • The treatment involved the injection of the drug bleomycin into the ocular tumor. Following the drug injection, electroportation was performed with a 15mm needle electrode held parallel to the ocular surface.
  • This combined methodology is recognized as electrochemotherapy (ECT). It employs electricity to make cancer cells more permeable so that the anti-cancer drug (in this case, bleomycin) can enter the cells more easily and enhance its therapeutic effect.

Results

  • The ECT treatment resulted in the application of therapeutic electric pulses, which led to a complete response from the tumor – meaning the tumor was completely eliminated.
  • Throughout the follow-up period, no recurrence of the tumor was observed. This indicates a successful outcome of the procedure.
  • In addition to its effectiveness, the treatment demonstrated mild tumor toxicity, meaning the procedure was relatively safe with no adverse effect on healthy tissues. This is a crucial aspect, as it suggests the methodology is not harmful to the horse’s overall health.

Conclusions

  • The case study concluded that the use of electrochemotherapy with bleomycin was a safe and effective treatment for bilateral ocular squamous cell carcinoma in this horse, with no recurrence of the tumour observed during the follow-up period.
  • This promising result suggests that ECT could potentially be an effective treatment for ocular tumors in general, but the authors also recommend further research to validate their findings.

Cite This Article

APA
Larsen MME, Eriksson A, Impellizeri JA. (2024). Electrochemotherapy with bleomycin for bilateral ocular squamous cell carcinoma in a horse. Vet Ophthalmol. https://doi.org/10.1111/vop.13310

Publication

Veterinary ophthalmology
ISSN: 1463-5224
NlmUniqueID: 100887377
Country: England
Language: English

Researcher Affiliations

Larsen, Majbritt M E
  • Evidensia Specialist Animal Hospital Helsingborg, Helsingborg, Sweden.
Eriksson, Anna
  • Evidensia Equine Hospital Helsingborg, Helsingborg, Sweden.
Impellizeri, Joseph A
  • Veterinary Oncology Services, New York, New York, USA.

References

This article includes 39 references
  1. Lavach JD, Severin GA. Neoplasia of the equine eye, adnexa, and orbit: a review of 68 cases.. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1977;170(2):202‐203.
  2. Mosunic CB, Moore PA, Carmicheal KP. Effects of treatment with and without adjuvant radiation therapy on recurrence of ocular and adnexal squamous cell carcinoma in horses: 157 cases (1985–2002).. Radiology 2004;225(11):1733‐1738.
  3. Bellone RR, Liu J, Petersen JL. A missense mutation in damage‐specific DNA binding protein 2 is a genetic risk factor for limbal squamous cell carcinoma in horses.. Int J Cancer 2017;141(2):342‐353.
    doi: 10.1002/ijc.30744google scholar: lookup
  4. Dugan S, Curtis C, Roberts S, Severin G. Epidmemiologic study of ocular/adnexal squamous cell carcinoma in horses.. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1991;198(2):251‐256.
  5. Singer‐Berk M, Knickelbein KE, Vig S. Genetic risk for squamous cell carcinoma of the nictitating membrane parallels that of the limbus in Haflinger horses.. Anim Genet 2018;49(5):457‐460.
    doi: 10.1111/age.12695google scholar: lookup
  6. Surjan Y, Donaldson D, Ostwald P, Milross C, Warren‐Forward H. A review of current treatment options in the treatment of ocular and/or periocular squamous cell carcinoma in horses: is there a definitive “best” practice?. J Equine Vet Sci 2014;34(9):1037‐1050.
  7. Taylor S, Haldorson G. A review of equine mucocutaneous squamous cell carcinoma.. Equine Vet Educ 2013;25(7):374‐378.
    doi: 10.1111/j.2042-3292.2012.00457.xgoogle scholar: lookup
  8. Wotman KL, Chow L, Martabano B, Pezzanite LM, Dow S. Novel ocular immunotherapy induces tumor regression in an equine model of ocular surface squamous neoplasia.. Cancer Immunol Immunother 2023;72(5):1185‐1198.
    doi: 10.1007/s00262-022-03321-2google scholar: lookup
  9. Martabano BB, Dow S, Chow L. Intralesional interferon alpha‐2b as a novel treatment for periocular squamous cell carcinoma in horses.. PLoS One 2024;19(2):e0297366.
    doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0297366google scholar: lookup
  10. Blohm KO, Nell B. Adjunctive bevacizumab therapy in an equine corneal stromal invasive squamous cell carcinoma with a 53‐months follow‐up.. Tierarztl Prax Ausgabe G Grosstiere – Nutztiere 2024;52(2):108‐114.
    doi: 10.1055/a-2253-8103google scholar: lookup
  11. Théon AP, Pascoe JR, Madigan JE, Carlson G, Metzger L. Comparison of intratumoral administration of cisplatin versus bleomycin for treatment of periocular squamous cell carcinomas in horses.. Am J Vet Res 1997;58(4):431‐436.
  12. Theon AP, Pascoe JR, Carlson G, Krag D. Intratumoral chemotherapy with cisplatin in oily emulsion in horses.. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1993;202(2):261‐267.
  13. Malalana F, Knottenbelt D, McKane S. Mitomycin C. With or without surgery, for the treatment of ocular squamous cell carcinoma in horses.. Vet Rec 2010;167(10):373‐376.
    doi: 10.1136/vr.c3815google scholar: lookup
  14. Rayner SG, Van Zyl N. The use of mitomycin C as an adjunctive treatment for equine ocular squamous cell carcinoma.. Aust Vet J 2006;84(1–2):43‐46.
    doi: 10.1111/j.1751-0813.2006.tb13124.xgoogle scholar: lookup
  15. Clode AB, Miller C, Mcmullen RJ, Gilger BC. A retrospective comparison of surgical removal and subsequent CO2 laser ablation versus topical administration of mitomycin C as therapy for equine corneolimbal squamous cell carcinoma.. Vet Ophthalmol 2012;15(4):254‐262.
    doi: 10.1111/j.1463-5224.2011.00982.xgoogle scholar: lookup
  16. Impellizeri J, Aurisicchio L, Forde P, Soden DM. Electroporation in veterinary oncology.. Vet J 2016;217:18‐25.
    doi: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2016.05.015google scholar: lookup
  17. Spugnini EP, Bolaffio C, Scacco L, Baldi A. Isolated limb perfusion electrochemotherapy for the treatment of an advanced squamous cell carcinoma of the hoof in a mare.. Open Vet J 2017;7:192‐196.
  18. Spugnini EP, Vincenzi B, Citro G. Electrochemotherapy for the treatment of squamous cell carcinoma in cats : a preliminary report.. Vet J 2009;179(1):117‐120.
    doi: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2007.08.011google scholar: lookup
  19. Landström FJ, Reizenstein J, Adamsson G. Long‐term follow‐up in patients treated with curative electrochemotherapy for cancer in the oral cavity and oropharynx.. Acta Otolaryngol 2015;135:1070‐1078.
    doi: 10.3109/00016489.2015.1049663google scholar: lookup
  20. Clover AJP, de Terlizzi F, Bertino G. Electrochemotherapy in the treatment of cutaneous malignancy: outcomes and subgroup analysis from the cumulative results from the pan‐European international network for sharing practice in Electrochemotherapy database for 2482 lesions in 987 patients (2008–2019).. Eur J Cancer 2020;138:30‐40.
    doi: 10.1016/j.ejca.2020.06.020google scholar: lookup
  21. Tozon N, Pavlin D, Sersa G, Dolinsek T, Cemazar M. Electrochemotherapy with intravenous bleomycin injection: an observational study in superficial squamous cell carcinoma in cats.. J Feline Med Surg 2014;16(4):291‐299.
    doi: 10.1177/1098612x13507071google scholar: lookup
  22. Simcic P, Pierini A, Lubas G. A retrospective multicentric study of Electrochemotherapy in the treatment of feline nasal Planum squamous cell carcinoma.. Vet Sci 2021;8(53):1‐16.
  23. Simcic P, Torrigiani F, Lowe R, Granziera V, Pierini A, Lubas G. Electrochemotherapy in treatment of canine oral non‐tonsillar squamous cell carcinoma. A case series report.. Vet Comp Oncol 2020;18(3):428‐432.
    doi: 10.1111/vco.12530google scholar: lookup
  24. de Castro Cunha RM, Lavalle GE, Nunes FC, de Oliveira AR, de Lima Santos R, de Araújo RB. Canine squamous cell carcinoma: Electrochemotherapy association with surgery and correlation with overall survival.. Vet Comp Oncol 2023;21(2):240‐254.
    doi: 10.1111/vco.12882google scholar: lookup
  25. Gehl J, Skovsgaard T, Mir LM. Enhancement of cytotoxicity by electropermeabilization: an improved method for screening drugs.. Anti‐Cancer Drugs 1998;9(4):319‐325.
    doi: 10.1097/00001813-199804000-00005google scholar: lookup
  26. Souza C, Villarino NF, Farnsworth K, Black ME. Enhanced cytotoxicity of bleomycin, cisplatin, and carboplatin on equine sarcoid cells following electroporation‐mediated delivery in vitro.. J Vet Pharmacol Ther 2016;40:97‐100.
    doi: 10.1111/jvp.12331google scholar: lookup
  27. Larsen MME. Treatment of equine sarcoids using intratumoral bleomycin in combination with tumour specific electroporation.. Vet Comp Oncol 2022;20(S2):16‐17.
    doi: 10.1111/vco.12850google scholar: lookup
  28. Fiorentzis M, Katopodis P, Kalirai H, Seitz B, Viestenz A, Coupland SE. Conjunctival melanoma and electrochemotherapy: preliminary results using 2D and 3D cell culture models in vitro.. Acta Ophthalmol 2019;97(4):e632‐e640.
    doi: 10.1111/aos.13993google scholar: lookup
  29. Dos Santos da Luz JC, Voges AC, D'agostino LG. Adjuvant electrochemotherapy of malignant ocular melanoma in a dog.. Vet Res Forum 2023;14(10):575‐578.
    doi: 10.30466/vrf.2023.1983391.3721google scholar: lookup
  30. Tozon N, Lampreht Tratar U, Znidar K, Sersa G, Teissie J, Cemazar M. Operating procedures of the Electrochemotherapy for treatment of tumor in dogs and cats.. J Vis Exp 2016;116:1‐7.
    doi: 10.3791/54760google scholar: lookup
  31. Lowe R, Gavazza A, Impellizeri JA, Soden DM, Lubas G. The treatment of canine mast cell tumours with electrochemotherapy with or without surgical excision.. Vet Comp Oncol 2017;15(3):775‐784.
    doi: 10.1111/vco.12217google scholar: lookup
  32. Chabner BA. Bleomycin and other antitumor antibiotics.. Cancer Chemotherapy and Biotherapy: Principles and Practice 2011;395:323‐341.
    doi: 10.1016/j.cej.2020.124989google scholar: lookup
  33. Torrigiani F, Pierini A, Lowe R, Sim P. Soft tissue sarcoma in dogs: a treatment review and a novel approach using electrochemotherapy in a case series.. Vet Comp Oncol 2019;17:234‐241.
    doi: 10.1111/vco.12462google scholar: lookup
  34. Moretti G, Dentini A, Beccati F. Palliative repeated electroporations of oral tumours in dogs: a case series.. Front Vet Sci 2022;9:1‐9.
    doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.1004811google scholar: lookup
  35. Tellado MN, Maglietti FH, Michinski SD, Marshall GR, Signori E. Electrochemotherapy in treatment of canine oral malignant melanoma and factors influencing treatment outcome.. Radiol Oncol 2020;54:68‐78.
    doi: 10.2478/raon-2020-0014google scholar: lookup
  36. Heinzelmann J, Hecht S, Vogt AR, Siebolts U, Kaatzsch P, Viestenz A. Repetitive Bleomycin‐based Electrochemotherapy improves antitumor effectiveness in 3D tumor models of conjunctival melanoma.. J Clin Med 2023;12(3):1087.
    doi: 10.3390/jcm12031087google scholar: lookup
  37. Spugnini EP, Citro G, Mellone P, Dotsinsky I, Mudrov N, Baldi A. Electrochemotherapy for localized lymphoma: a preliminary study in companion animals.. J Exp Clin Cancer Res 2007;26(3):515‐518.
  38. Spugnini EP, Vincenzi B, Amadio B, Baldi A. Adjuvant electrochemotherapy with bleomycin and cisplatin combination for canine soft tissue sarcomas: a study of 30 cases.. Open Vet J 2019;9(1):88‐93.
  39. Campana LG, Kis E, Bottyán K. Electrochemotherapy for advanced cutaneous angiosarcoma: a European register‐based cohort study from the international network for sharing practices of electrochemotherapy (InspECT).. Int J Surg 2019;72:34‐42.
    doi: 10.1016/j.ijsu.2019.10.013google scholar: lookup

Citations

This article has been cited 1 times.
  1. Ostendarp C, Barton AK. Intraocular Tumors in Horses: Diagnosis, Tumor Classification, Oncologic Assessment and Therapy. Vet Sci 2025 Oct 17;12(10).
    doi: 10.3390/vetsci12101006pubmed: 41150147google scholar: lookup
Subscribe to our newsletter
Join 99,005 horse owners like you who receive our email updates on horse health and nutrition.