Skin cancer? External Marek’s tumors?

[mf1sh]

My poor hen started developing some patches on her comb about 8 weeks ago. It initially looked like fowlpox which I’ve had in my flock in the past, so I treated with iodine daily. Unfortunately the patches continued to grow and now look like tumors. They’re hard and not full of pus. I feel so bad for my hen - this must be painful and one is growing so large it has started blocking her vision in one eye. I’ve been applying silver sulfadiazine cream and neosporin but they continue to grow. There are smaller bumps hidden under her beard and neck.

Has anyone seen tumors like this? My flock is Marek’s positive and she was not vaccinated as a chick. She’s ~5 years old, Ameraucana/Easter Egger. She’s not laying but I think that’s due to her age and the heat here in Phoenix, AZ. She’s still feisty, eating well, sleeping on the perch with her flockmates. Unfortunately taking her to a chicken vet is not a solution - the only exotic vet in town who sees chickens is very expensive and not as knowledgable about poultry. I’m assuming these are Marek’s tumors on the skin but would love feedback and input if anyone’s seen something similar in their flock. Not a ton of information and photos available regarding exterior Marek’s tumors. Maybe skin cancer? I will euthanize her when it gets worse and her quality of life starts to suffer, but until then I’m curious about what this is.

Aug 1: slightly orange color from iodine. Spots had shown up about 2 weeks earlier.

Aug 18:

 

[Kiki]

Oh my, that poor thing.

I'd not let her suffer much longer.

 

[mf1sh]

Oh my, that poor thing.

I'd not let her suffer much longer.

I won’t. I love her and I’m not afraid to euthanize when it’s her time. She’s not ready yet.

 

[Eggcessive]

Sorry about your chicken.Those do look like squamous cell carcinoma or skin cancer. It would be necessary to have your state vet do a necropsy though, to rule out Mareks or confirm squamous cell. They can take tissue samples during a complete necropsy and do histology on the the samples. Here are some pictures of squamous cell and note the crater-like lesions:
https://sesc.cat/en/squamous-cell-carcinoma-in-laying-hens/

 

[mf1sh]

8/23 update - I found some penicillin a few days ago (8/18) and started giving her 125mg daily. The scabs fell off! Whether it’s a coincidence or a result of the penicillin, I don’t know but I don’t care. I’m so relieved she’s doing better! Crossing my fingers they continue to heal and do not regrow.

Aug 19: big comb scab fell off

Aug 21: eye scabs fell off

Aug 23: everything is shrinking

 

[Sally PB]

WOW! That's impressive!

Hoping she continues to improve.

 

[Bkaye]

This very interesting to me. I had a girl who developed a similar bump on her eye last fall. I originally thought it was fowl pox but she started to develop puss which I removed. Started her on amoxicillin and it didn’t improve. I ended up calling her. A short time later I discovered I had Mareks in my flock. Here are a few pics on how hers progressed.

 

[Bkaye]

This was the last pic before I decided to cull. It went on for about a month and only seemed to get worse.

 

[mf1sh]

This was the last pic before I decided to cull. It went on for about a month and only seemed to get worse.View attachment 3617685

Poor babe. Seems like culling was the best decision. I’m sorry for your loss. I’m glad I tried the penicillin and/or I’m glad the scabs coincidentally fell off because I was getting close to making the decision to euthanize.