Giant verrucous carcinoma in a giraffe

Abstract

An 18-year-old male giraffe developed a verrucous lesion, 50 cm in diameter, on a flank. Some areas of the lesion were histologically typical of a viral verruca with papillomatosis, prominent hypergranulosis, and inclusion bodies. The bulk of the mass was a well-differentiated verrucous type of squamous cell carcinoma. It may be that the virus of the verruca also caused the verrucous carcinoma.