Canines, as companion and duty/service animals, are highly liked domesticated animals. Therefore, numerous conditions which affect their health needs to be taken care of, for their well-being. Among various fatal conditions which diminish their work potential and shorten their lifespan are tumors and malignancies. Canine mammary tumor is one such important concern among both owners and Veterinarians. Though frequency of mammary tumors varies in different species, canines are the most frequently affected ones, with prevalence about 3 times higher than humans. Therefore pen side tests and point-of-care diagnostics are to be developed. Treatment regimens and therapeutics are kept up-to-date for efficient management of such conditions.

Canine domestication is an age-old practice which started with guard for humans and other animals, dogs being the favorite companion animals. They have many positive social effects on lives of their owners including enhanced emotional sense and companionship and even reduction of anxiety and mental disorders. Though dogs have proven good for human health, it should be kept in mind that are prone to many disorders and infectious diseases. Healthy life of dogs is attributed to healthy lifestyle, good feeding practices and regular medical care. In addition, an equally important practice is vaccination. Since dogs live in close proximity to human beings and their environment, regular check on their immunity becomes essential, especially when kept as indoor pets. Their illnesses vary from minor issues like dental tartar to fatal diseases like tumors and rabies. Depending upon lifestyle patterns and subsequent body parameters, many predisposing factors increases the susceptibility of dogs to various diseases.

Mammary tumors are either of benign or malignant types. Benign tumors are defined as mass or lump of cells unable to invade the neighboring tissue/ organ and less likely to re-grow after removal. However, malignant tumors are the tumors which have the ability to invade other tissues/ organs and tend to re-grow even after surgical removal. Malignant tumors grow at faster rate as compared to benign tumors. Nearly, 40-50% of canine mammary tumors (CMTs) are malignant.

CMTs can be classified on the basis of morphologic features, tissue of origin (epithelial, myoepithelial or mesenchymal tissue) or prognosis. The World Health Organization (WHO) classification of canine and feline mammary tumors has categorized CMT into three major categories i) malignant, ii) benign and iii) unclassified tumors. On the basis of histological characteristics, the mammary tumors have been classified into fibroadenomas, adenomas, solid carcinomas (with transformed epithelial cells), tubular adenocarcinomas (with tubule like arrangements), papillary adenocarcinomas (having papillary like projections), anaplastic carcinomas (with highly pleomorphic cells), sarcomas (involvement of connective tissue) and malignant tumors (Fig. 2). Fibroadenomas and adenomas are the types of benign mammary tumors the former contains some connective tissues component in between, and carcinomas, adenocarcinomas and sarcomas come under malignant tumors.

Human breast cancer (HBC) is a common malady concomitant with a massive death rate throughout the world. It has been reported that around 1.7 million women are globally identified with breast neoplasia, and out of this, half a million female dies from this terrible disease (Torre et al., 2015). Due to the shocking impacts of breast cancer, prevention, and therapeutic interventions have become a priority-based objective for many researchers to understand the biology of breast cancer disease during its progression and development.