Principles of treatment for canine lymphoma.

Canine lymphoma is one of the most commonly diagnosed canine neoplasms. It is helpful to classify lymphoma anatomically, because these forms each have common histories and clinical signs. Anatomic forms include multicentric, alimentary, mediastinal, and cutaneous forms. Because lymphoma is a systemic disease, systemic chemotherapy is the most appropriate modality for its treatment. Lymphoma cells are sensitive to chemotherapy, and complete remission rates are high when these patients are treated with conventional chemotherapy. Treated dogs maintain a good quality of life, and treatment can provide resolution of many presenting signs and abnormalities. The fundamental goals of chemotherapy are to induce a durable remission and to re-induce a remission after one or more relapses. Other therapies, such as surgery and radiation therapy, are appropriate in certain situations. Prognostic factors will also be summarized.