Familial incidence of mammary gland tumours in the Djungarian hamster (Phodopus sungaros): a case report

Abstract

Tumours of the mammary gland were diagnosed in one female Djungarian hamster (Phodopus sungaros) and in two of her daughters from two litters. Altogether, five tumours were diagnosed. Three of them were adenocarcinomas, one was adenoma with disseminated foci of adenocarcinoma and one was diagnosed as an atypical fibrosarcoma derived from cutaneous ganglion cell-like cells. This was a recurrent tumour in the proximity of the previously extirpated adenocarcinoma. Using specific PCR primers for conserved regions of the mouse mammary tumour virus (MMTV) no endogenous provirus DNA could be detected in DNA samples isolated from formalin-fixed paraffin embedded tissue sections.