Cysts - are they worth removing?

[Dilly's Piggies]

My 2 year old sow Lottie has had a pea sized lump on her right side, behind her armpit for about 4 months which the vet first thought was an abscess but due to it not growing it looks to be more like a cyst. It hasn't grown or caused any problems, but my vet has advised we remove it. I'm extremely reluctant to put her through surgery when it's not causing issues... She's young but has had a life full of health issues so she's not exactly a good candidate in my opinion, I don't want to lose her when it may not be worth doing... What would be the best thing to do?

 

[Betsy]

Betsy has couple of fatty lumps/cysts and has had them for around 18 months. One of which is in her armpit. They don't cause her any pain or bother so I have left well alone. If they start to cause problems I will have to think again. Go with your gut feeling and monitor the lump carefully.

 

[Lady Kelly]

I have the same with Daisy, can't remember now when it showed up think it was around Feb time. I've kind of gone with the feeling that whilst it isn't causing her any discomfort or problems I'll leave her as she is. At around 4 years old I wouldn't rush for surgery with her unless it was going to change her life

 

[Guineapigfeet]

One of mine had a cyst on her side about a year ago. Vet advised to leave it and just keep an eye. It burst several weeks later and they cleaned it up. They said removal was an option, as it could always re fill, but it hasn’t so far.

 

[Eriathwen]

Shelly also has a cyst on her side, as well as some fatty lumps on her stomach. When she was at the vet they said if it came to a head or burst I could clean it out etc but it's done nothing really and I'd be very loathe to have it removed if it's not doing anything. For me it would be an unnecessary risk to have surgery if it's not causing problems.

 

[Claire W]

My Edward has 3 fatty lumps one of which is in his armpit. My vet has suggested that we just keep an eye on them. They’re not causing him any problems so far so we’re leaving well alone

 

[Wiebke]

Generally, vets prefer to leave any harmless smaller cysts be unless they restrict any movement or cause problems where they are and just keep them under observation. Many of them never need anything doing to them, so it is less risky to leave them be and only deal with them if or when they really need dealing with than going through a full operation that for something that may never be more than a minor nuisance.

Removal of burst cysts (which can get infected and/or refill), large cysts or cysts that impede movement needs to be discussed with your vet. In this case, age/fitness, location, size, the risk of infection or the likelihood of refilling are taken into consideration when making a decision.

I had two removal operations in two 6 year olds in the last couple of years, one for a smaller cyst sat right next to the genitalia which had burst and become infected and one for a very large cyst that unfortunately continued to grow rather quickly and promptly burst while my piggy savvy vets were on holiday this summer. Both sows have recovered well, by the way, and Hafren has celebrated her 7th birthday with a nice big operation scar! My Tanni died with her sebaceous cyst on her back, which she'd had under observation for three years, aged 6 1/2 years from a completely unlreated caused.

 

[Merab]

Whatever decision you make about Lottie will be right for you.
You know her better than anyone else and will know whether the risk of surgery or other treatment is the best choice or whether to keep an eye on things is best.
It can be worrying trying to decide what's best for our beloved piggies

I know that for ovarian cysts hormone treatment is a possibility. It's something I'm looking into for my 6 year old Merab who almost certainly has ovarian cysts
@Wiebke - please can you give some more information about this, or point me in the right direction. Thanks.

You can look into chorulon injections or consider draining in older/frail sows with ovarian cysts. The latter is not permanent, but it can be done with no/minimal sedation and will still last for several months. You can also repeat it as often as you need.
Please start your own thread for more knowledgeable input from people with actual experience of hormone therapy, which I haven't as my piggy savvy vet prefers spaying ops. Ovarian cysts are an entirely different kettle of fish to sebaceous cysts in the skin.

 

[Dilly's Piggies]

Lottie did have ovarian cysts at only 1 year old, she was spayed successfully, I wonder if it's connected somehow, I know some guinea pigs are prone to getting cysts so I'm looking out for new lumps as well as watching the one she already has closely. The vet did pop a needle into the lump to see if she could drain anything out, but nothing came out. Lottie wasn't very cooperative though so she couldn't get a good try.

The lump has a black coloured hole in the middle but that only happened after the vet put the needle in, so I think it's bruising/scaring from that. The lump grew to the size it is extremely fast but it has halted, hasn't grown at all in 4 months. As it's very small and not affecting her at all I'm going to leave it alone for now and just watch it.

Thank you everyone for your input, I would never forgive myself if I lost her in surgery over something unnecessary... One of my past, elderly sows had a fatty mammary tumour about the same size as Lottie's, wasn't causing issues either, we did put her through surgery but unfortunately she didn't make it, so I'm extra reluctant!

 

[Wiebke]

Lottie did have ovarian cysts at only 1 year old, she was spayed successfully, I wonder if it's connected somehow, I know some guinea pigs are prone to getting cysts so I'm looking out for new lumps as well as watching the one she already has closely. The vet did pop a needle into the lump to see if she could drain anything out, but nothing came out. Lottie wasn't very cooperative though so she couldn't get a good try.

The lump has a black coloured hole in the middle but that only happened after the vet put the needle in, so I think it's bruising/scaring from that. The lump grew to the size it is extremely fast but it has halted, hasn't grown at all in 4 months. As it's very small and not affecting her at all I'm going to leave it alone for now and just watch it.

Thank you everyone for your input, I would never forgive myself if I lost her in surgery over something unnecessary... One of my past, elderly sows had a fatty mammary tumour about the same size as Lottie's, wasn't causing issues either, we did put her through surgery but unfortunately she didn't make it, so I'm extra reluctant!

Ovarian and sebaceous cysts are not connected.

 

[DM030819]

One of my past boys had a sebaceous cyst on his side. We opted to leave it but it did eventually grow and after a few years we opted to have it removed as it got a bit too big and messy for my liking.

On the flip side Anselmo got a lump on his cheek. We opted to get that removed straight away despite him being 6. There was no time to leave it because if it grew then there would have been no spare skin to sew up a wound after having it removed.

I'd keep an eye on it, and opt for removal if it ever gets to a point where there's not much skin left to cover the cut.

 

[GPTV]

i have had sebacious cysts on a few of my girls, Ellies was on her rump (1cm diameter), the vet tried to establish if it was an abscess or cyst by drawing out some of the contents with a needle. It was thick & non odorous, so decided it was a cyst. the vet cleaned it out by squeezing it through the puncture hole, it would keep refilling every few months, but the vet said to clean it gently when it was full - it was actually easy as the puncture hole never healed properly so i could just gently pick the scab off & the contents (cottage cheese consistency) would come out with gentle pressure (no hard squeezing anyway as it could cause infection). She had it when aged 5yrs for about 3yrs with no real issues - i would discuss with the vet about monitoring it for size & shape changes, mobility issues, etc.
My Orca has a lump above her eye/on forehead looked like a pimple for years, but now it's grown to a pea size, the vet has measured it & want me to monitor it for changes, taking her back if any issues.

if Lottie hasn't enjoyed good health i'd probably be inclined to leave surgery as a last resort too.

@Merab's Slave my Rainbow bridge Ellie had the HCG hormone injections twice (once aged 6 & second batch aged 7), they worked brilliantly for her
try looking through this old thread Ellie- Ovarian Cyst,maybe Stones, Suggestions Please.

 

[Merab]

i have had sebacious cysts on a few of my girls, Ellies was on her rump (1cm diameter), the vet tried to establish if it was an abscess or cyst by drawing out some of the contents with a needle. It was thick & non odorous, so decided it was a cyst. the vet cleaned it out by squeezing it through the puncture hole, it would keep refilling every few months, but the vet said to clean it gently when it was full - it was actually easy as the puncture hole never healed properly so i could just gently pick the scab off & the contents (cottage cheese consistency) would come out with gentle pressure (no hard squeezing anyway as it could cause infection). She had it when aged 5yrs for about 3yrs with no real issues - i would discuss with the vet about monitoring it for size & shape changes, mobility issues, etc.
My Orca has a lump above her eye/on forehead looked like a pimple for years, but now it's grown to a pea size, the vet has measured it & want me to monitor it for changes, taking her back if any issues.

if Lottie hasn't enjoyed good health i'd probably be inclined to leave surgery as a last resort too.

@Merab's Slave my Rainbow bridge Ellie had the HCG hormone injections twice (once aged 6 & second batch aged 7), they worked brilliantly for her
try looking through this old thread Ellie- Ovarian Cyst,maybe Stones, Suggestions Please.

Thank you