Transarterial Embolisation as Palliative Therapy for Oral Tumours in Canine and Feline Patients: A Retrospective Case Series

In human medicine, transarterial embolisation (TAE) is widely used to manage inoperable tumours and intractable haemorrhages. However, its application in veterinary patients with oral tumours remains limited. Accordingly, we aimed to investigate the clinical utility of TAE using polyvinyl alcohol particles for the treatment of oral neoplasms in dogs and cats. We included 15 dogs and cats with oral neoplasia. The tumour types included squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), melanoma and chondrosarcoma. All patients underwent intra-arterial administration of carboplatin, followed by selective embolisation of the tumour-feeding arteries. There was a significant post-procedural improvement in clinical signs such as oral bleeding and anorexia (p < 0.05). Follow-up computed tomography imaging findings, which were available for 12 patients, demonstrated a significant tumour volume reduction of 50.66% (95% confidence interval: 10.46%-83.92%; p = 0.002). There were no major complications, with minor adverse events such as skin ulceration or transient pain being self-limiting. Among the 15 patients, 13 died during the study period, with survival times ranging from 60 to 499 days. Two patients were still alive at the time of analysis, at 305 and 406 days, respectively. When categorised by species and tumour type, dogs with SCC survived for 60-305 days, cats with SCC for 70-291 days, dogs with melanoma for 77-406 days and the two dogs with chondrosarcoma survived for 103 and 499 days, respectively. These findings suggest that TAE is a well-tolerated, minimally invasive treatment that can effectively reduce the tumour burden and clinical symptoms in veterinary patients with oral tumours.