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CASE REPORT article

Front. Vet. Sci.

Sec. Oncology in Veterinary Medicine

Case Report: Renal Hemangiosarcoma in a Free-Ranging Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes)

Provisionally accepted
Adriano MinichinoAdriano Minichino1Giuseppina MennonnaGiuseppina Mennonna1Maria DimatteoMaria Dimatteo2*Barbara degli UbertiBarbara degli Uberti2Marianna D'AmoreMarianna D'Amore2Francesca SantomartinoFrancesca Santomartino2Evaristo Di NapoliEvaristo Di Napoli3Orlando PacielloOrlando Paciello2Luigi Maria De Luca BossaLuigi Maria De Luca Bossa1Ludovico DipinetoLudovico Dipineto3Luca BorrelliLuca Borrelli3Guido RosatoGuido Rosato4
  • 1UOC Sanità Animale e Presidio Ospedaliero Veterinario ASL NA 1 Centro, Naples, Italy
  • 2Experimental Zooprophylactic Institute of Southern Italy (IZSM), Portici, Italy
  • 3Department of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Production, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy
  • 4UOSD Epidemiologia e Registro Tumori Animali ASL NA 1 Centro, Naples, Italy

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Word count: 151 This report describes the first documented case of primary renal hemangiosarcoma in a male red fox (Vulpes vulpes Linnaeus, 1758) admitted to the Wildlife Rescue Center "Federico II" – Veterinary Hospital of the Local Health Authority (ASL) Napoli 1 Centro in Naples, Italy. The fox, originating from a sparsely urbanized area, presented with progressive debilitation. Diagnostic imaging (ultrasound, radiography, CT) identified a mass in the right kidney. Cytology suggested a malignant neoplasm, and histopathology confirmed hemangiosarcoma with multiple metastases to abdominal organs and to the heart. Necropsy revealed splenomegaly and a bladder lesion, while virological and bacteriological investigations excluded infectious diseases. Tumor rupture was considered the most likely cause of fatal hemorrhagic shock. This case underscores the value of advanced diagnostic techniques and systematic post-mortem investigations in wildlife medicine, contributing to the limited knowledge of neoplastic diseases in free-ranging foxes and highlighting the importance of wildlife health surveillance for ecological insight.

Keywords: Hemangiosarcoma, Red fox, Renal tumor, wildlife pathology, wildlife surveillance

Received: 12 Dec 2025; Accepted: 28 Jan 2026.

Copyright: © 2026 Minichino, Mennonna, Dimatteo, degli Uberti, D'Amore, Santomartino, Di Napoli, Paciello, De Luca Bossa, Dipineto, Borrelli and Rosato. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Maria Dimatteo

Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.

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