Growth on Lip
- Thread starter Cybreezy
- Start date
Granuloma's and neoplastic masses are quite common in fish, some are viral, some bacterial, some even seasonal, some are fibrosarcomas. No way to tell without a biopsy.
Some come and go, and as stated above, you can take a chance and cut it off, and it may never return.
Some come and go, and as stated above, you can take a chance and cut it off, and it may never return.
I'm a vet in DFW/Texas and have worked on a few fish over the years. In a dog or cat I would be very suspicious of this mass being a SCC (squamous cell carcinoma). Cutting it off as mentioned may be curative or it could return. It would be best to get a biopsy of the mass to assess future risk bit that may not be practical. Good luck.
I would call local vets. Explain it's a fish and obviously you can't bring it in on a leash. You need a jar of formalin from the lab (they are supplied free to the vet). Excise the mass as planned and take jar with mass to the vet. They will send it to the lab. You want a biopsy report with histopathology. Should take about 3 days for results. Cost could be quite variable for the same thing, so call around. Usually more rural is cheaper. Here the fee at clinics I work at ranges from about 100-250 (for the same report).
For the surgery 2% chlorhexidine or dilute betadine are good sterile agents. Alcohol or peroxide don't do much. See if you can get some lidocaine gel or paste. This would be a great local anesthetic for this case. Also a scalpel blade would be best. Good luck.
Also you mentioned it gets smaller sometimes (and white). It could be a wart type mass which is not serious. Cutting it off should get rid of it.
