- Date posted: 28th January 2025
RVC uncovers risk factors of canine insulinoma
Despite a poor prognosis for canine insulinoma, there is a limited understanding of it.
A new study from the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) has revealed the factors which contribute to an increased risk of canine insulinoma.
An insulinoma is a common hormone-secreting tumour which releases insulin in an uncontrolled fashion. This can lead to dangerously low blood glucose levels, which can be lethal.
However, despite the poor prognosis of these tumours, RVC says that there is a limited understanding of the factors behind it.
To fill this knowledge gap, researchers sought to understand the prevalence and incidence risk of the condition in dogs. The study would also explore the demographic risk factors.
To investigate the condition, researchers reviewed the VetCompass electronic health records of 2,250,741 dogs in primary veterinary care in 2019.
The data reveals a 0.003 per cent incident rate of insulinoma in dogs. This is a rate ten times higher than that of human insulinoma.
For the first time, the research has also been able to identify the individual dog breeds which are more likely to develop insulinoma.
Among the breeds most likely to develop insulinoma are the boxer, flat coated retriever, German pointer and the West Highland white terrier, which were 4.5 to 9.5 times as likely. The English springer spaniel was 2.7 times more likely to develop insulinoma compared to crossbreeds. The records also suggest that terrier breeds might also have a predisposition to insulinoma.
As well as the breed data, the researchers also identified other epidemiological data which increased the chances of a dog receiving an insulinoma diagnosis.
Researchers identified that neutered females could be more likely to receive a diagnosis, as were dogs aged nine to 15 years old. Adult dogs weighing 20-30kg, or having a body weight above average for their sex or breed, were also more likely to be diagnosed with insulinoma.
There was also an increased risk for breeds which were already predisposed to parathyroid cancer and thyroid cancer.
The researchers believe that these discoveries will improve the understanding and provide evidence which will support veterinary teams to diagnose and manage the condition. It may also further understanding of canine insulinoma genetics and tumourigenesis.
Since the canine insulinoma has some similarities with human insulinoma, researchers believe this data may also prove beneficial to human scientists.
Dan O’Neill, associate professor in companion animal epidemiology at the RVC, said: “Although a rare diagnosis in dogs at a population level, insulinoma carries huge welfare impacts for those individual dogs diagnosed and their owners.
“Owners of predisposed breeds such as Dogue de Bordeaux, German pointer and flat coated retriever and their veterinary surgeons now have the power of big data as an advanced warning system on the increased risk here and so hopefully achieve earlier diagnosis and better outcomes.”
The full study can be found in the journal Scientific Reports.
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