Medical management of Echinococcus multilocularis infection mimicking a locally aggressive cavitary tumor with pulmonary metastases in a dog

摘要

A two-year-old Labrador retriever living in the French Alps was presented with abdominal distension, lethargy and weight loss but no other specific clinical signs. CT examination revealed a large, cavitary liver mass invading the caudal vena cava, associated with multiple hepatic lesions of similar appearance, lymphadenopathy and pulmonary nodules. The condition was initially mistaken for a malignant neoplasm. However, cytologic and histologic examinations of the largest liver mass were consistent with cestodiasis and PCR testing confirmed infection with Echinococcus multilocularis. Medical treatment with albendazole was initiated. The dog remained clinically well for ten months following the diagnosis, but had to be euthanized because the owners had to return to Great-Britain and the dog could not be legally imported. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first case report, in which long-term follow-up of Echinococcus sp. infection in a dog, managed medically, is described. This case also shows that medical management may be a viable option in case surgery is not feasible.