Implant of Port-o-Cath for antineoplastic chemotherapy in a canine: case report

ABSTRACT

The Port-a-Cath is a totally implantable central venous catheter that allows the infusion of chemotherapeutic agents, blood products, parenteral nutrition, and blood sample collection. This work reports the case of a dog with a tumor in the pelvic limb that was treated surgically and received the catheter for cancer chemotherapy. The patient was diagnosed with synovial sarcoma, an uncommon tumor in dogs that usually affects the joints and requires multimodal therapy. The treatment was done in two steps, in the first the limb was amputated and in the second the Port-a-Cath implantation and the excision of the metastatic nodule were performed. The dog responded well to surgery and chemotherapy sessions held with proper functioning of the catheter, and died from other causes 90 days after the procedure. The implantation of Port-a-Cath for chemotherapy is a great ally of multimodal therapy recommended for cancer, so this catheter may be considered for patients requiring chemotherapy medication for a long period.

Keywords:
totally implantable central venous catheter; soft tissue sarcoma; oncology