Cohort profile: The Golden Retriever Lifetime Study (GRLS)

Abstract

The aim of this article is to provide a detailed description of the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study (GRLS), a prospective cohort study investigating nutritional, environmental, lifestyle, and genetic risk factors for cancer and other common diseases in dogs. Primary outcomes of interest include hemangiosarcoma, lymphoma, osteosarcoma, and high-grade mast cell tumors. Secondary outcomes of interest include other cancers, hypothyroidism, epilepsy, atopy, otitis externa, hip dysplasia, heart failure, and renal failure. A total of 3,044 United States Golden Retrievers aged 6 months to 2 years completed baseline enrollment from June 2012 to April 2015. As of May 31, 2021, 2,251 dogs remain engaged in the study, 352 have died, and 441 are lost to follow-up. Extensive annual questionnaires completed by owners and veterinarians gather information about lifestyle, environmental exposures, physical activity, reproductive history, behavior, diet, medications, and diagnoses. Dogs also have annual veterinary examinations and biospecimen collection (blood, serum, hair, nails, feces, urine) for biobanking. Additional reporting, including histology and tumor biobanking, is conducted for any malignancies or deaths. When an animal dies, full medical records are obtained, and necropsies are requested at owner discretion. Full or partial necropsies have been performed on 218 dogs. Questionnaire data are freely available to researchers with approved credentials who agree to a data use agreement. In addition, researchers can submit proposals to utilize biospecimens or obtain additional data.

Antimicrobial treatment preferences among veterinarians for Golden Retrievers in the United States

“…Detailed information about data collection and the GRLS design has been previously described. 7,8 Briefly, privately owned purebred Golden Retriever dogs aged 6 months to 2 years and free of life-limiting disease were recruited within the contiguous US from 2012 to 2015. Participating owners and veterinarians provided informed consent and agreed to the study requirements.…”

Large-scale genomic analysis of the domestic dog informs biological discovery

“…A cohort of mixed breed dogs will also retain causal variants for breed-related traits and have low levels of population stratification. Multiple prospective cohorts need to be initiated using much the same structure as the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study ( Labadie et al 2022 ). Such studies should include frequent sampling, owner questionnaire data, and access to detailed health care data and related samples.…”

Translating energy balance research from the bench to the clinic to the community: Parallel animal‐human studies in cancer

“…Hemangiosarcoma was the most common, and leukemia/lymphoma was the second most common, cancer type. 35 To our knowledge, there are currently no interventional exercise and cancer studies being performed in dogs. However, an example of how canine studies may inform human studies in cancer is found in a randomized phase 3 trial performed in pets and then translated to a parallel study that included humans, assessing how hyperthermia affected outcomes of irradiated tumors.…”

“…As of May 31, 2021, 45% of the projected 500 primary end points (dogs with cancer development) had been obtained. Hemangiosarcoma was the most common, and leukemia/lymphoma was the second most common, cancer type 35 …”