Partial Glossectomy in a Blue-Tongued Skink (Tiliqua scincoides) with Lingual Squamous Cell Carcinoma

Abstract

Abstract A 16-year-old, male, intact blue-tongued skink (Tiliqua scincoides) was evaluated for reluctance to eat, deviation of the tongue, and a pink mass noted in the mouth. On physical examination, a 2–3 cm long by 1 cm wide pink, well-vascularized, friable, cobblestone-textured mass was found adhered to the median raphe on the ventral aspect of the tongue. Surgical debulking was performed and biopsy samples were submitted for histopathology, which revealed a squamous cell carcinoma. Very small numbers of mixed-growth bacteria were also cultured from the sample. A complete blood count revealed toxic heterophils, monocytosis, and basophilia; however, the total white blood cell count was within reference values. A partial glossectomy was performed excising the distal 40% of the tongue, including the mass with 0.5–1 cm gross surgical margins. Histopathologically, the neoplasm was excised with narrow margins of normal tissue, leading to the concern for possible local tumor recurrence and metastasis. The pat...