Case Report: Surgical resection of high-grade extradural thoracic vertebral chondrosarcoma in a dog

Introduction: This report describes the clinical presentation, diagnosis, treatment, and outcome of a dog with an extradural, non-compressive, high-grade thoracic vertebral chondrosarcoma (CSA). Case presentation: surgical resection was performed via a dorsal laminectomy with osteotomy of the spinous process using a bilateral paramedian approach to the T5-T7 vertebral column. Histopathological analysis confirmed a high-grade (grade III) chondrosarcoma with no histologic evidence of neoplasia at the bone margins. At the 2-week and 5-month recheck, the dog exhibited complete clinical resolution of CSA. Repeat computed tomography (CT) imaging performed 5 months postoperatively revealed no evidence of tumor recurrence. Conclusion: This case demonstrates that high-grade vertebral CSA can be successfully treated with wide surgical excision, particularly in the absence of neural invasion. However, long-term tumor surveillance is required.