Transitional cell carcinoma is the most common neoplasm of the urinary tract in the dog. Cytology by suction biopsy of the bladder is one of the most common methods of diagnosis, however this is not always diagnostic, especially when epithelial cells do not display marked features of atypia or when these are accompanied by inflammatory cells. Tissue biopsy via cystoscopy or surgery is a valid alternative, however this procedure is expensive, invasive and it requires general anaesthesia.
The BRAF mutation detection assay is a DNA test that helps in the detection of canine transitional carcinoma. According to our internal data recently published, this mutation has been identified in 70% of canine transitional carcinoma cases. This data is similar to those present in the literature, which vary between 67-87%. Interestingly, the mutation has not been detected in dogs with other cancers not in dogs with inflammatory bladder diseases, giving to this test a specificity of 100%. This means that a positive result can be used to definitively confirm a cytological suspicion for transitional cell carcinoma. The other advantage of this technique is that it does not require any additional sample to be taken and the pre-stained cytology slide previously submitted can be used for this purpose.
This and many more genetic tests are offered by BattLab in cooperation with LABOKLIN. For more information, do not hesitate to contact us.
