Re: RC: greys and cancer

[CMKSAGEHIL@aol.com]

In a message dated Thu, 6 Sep 2001  3:41:40 PM Eastern Daylight Time, "Beth Gunn" <happyhoofprints@hotmail.com> writes:

> If it is not sun related, why do   greys exibit this more "melanomas"?  Also, another posted idea that we are not "seeing"   the whole picture. There may be other cancers inside horses body,   non-greys, that we are not aware of?  

The high incidence of melanomas in grey horses is apparently genetic.  I am the one who posted about internal melanomas, and not seeing the whole picture just looking at the superficial ones, but apparently I did not make myself clear--the high incidence of internal melanomas is also in greys.  Melanoma is commonly found in the lymphatics of the digestive tract and elsewhere in the abdominal cavity in grey horses.  The superficial ones are just the tip of the iceberg.  Also, a grey horse may have superficial ones and no internal ones, or internal ones and no superficial ones, or both.  Having them in one location does not necessarily mean that they are elsewhere.  Occasionally, they metastasize to the brain as well.  I had the misfortune of apparently having this happen in one mare (the brain was not checked on post-mortem, but she was otherwise riddled)--she had been a pretty honest old mare, one of those "wily coyotes" that can be challenging to catch, etc., but still is decent to handle when she knows the
 game is up.  She became a threat to her own safety, as well as to those around her (both horse and human).  Sad way to go...

Heidi