Hematopoietic neoplasms in lizards: Report of a typical case in hydrosaurus amboinensis and of a probable case in <i>Varanus salvator</i>

Abstract

Abstract Lymphoreticular proliferative disorders are described in two lizards. The first case, in an East Indian water lizard, Hydrosaurus amboinensis, was classified as a diffuse type of malignant lymphoma of lymphoblastic cell type and is the first known example of a hematopoietic neoplasm in a lizard (class Reptilia; suborder Sauria). The second case, in a Malayan monitor, Varanus salvator, also presented features characteristic of a generalized lymphosarcomatosis, but granulomas associated with a disseminated bacterial infection complicated the picture and precluded an incontestable diagnosis.