Feline exocrine pancreatic carcinoma: a retrospective study of 34 cases

Abstract

Thirty-four cases were reviewed in this retrospective study for information on clinical presentation, prognostic indicators, survival time and response to various therapies. The most common presenting clinical signs were weight loss, decreased appetite, vomiting, palpable abdominal mass and diarrhoea. Metastatic disease was confirmed in 11 cats. The overall median survival was 97 days. The median survival times for patients who received chemotherapy or had their masses surgically removed was 165 days. Those patients who had an abdominal effusion present at the time of diagnosis survived a median of 30 days. Cats that received non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug therapy had a median survival of 26 days. This study confirms that exocrine pancreatic carcinoma in cats is an aggressive tumour with a high metastatic rate and poor prognosis, although three patients survived over 1 year. Fifteen percent of the patients were diabetic, which raises the question as to what the link between diabetes and pancreatic cancer in people and cats may be.

Epidemiology of Diabetes Mellitus among 193,435 Cats Attending Primary‐Care Veterinary Practices in England

“…However, DM in cats can also result from other causes. Hypersomatotropism (acromegaly) has been estimated to cause 25% of diabetes cases in cats in the United Kingdom, and other recognized causes include hyperadrenocorticism, pancreatic disease and diabetogenic drug administration …”

Chyloabdomen in a cat with pancreatic carcinoma

“…In this case report, pancreatic carcinoma was identified as the underlying cause of the chyloabdomen. Linderman et al (2013) previously reported 34 feline cases of pancreatic carcinoma; chylous ascites was present in one cat in this series. In human medicine, direct malignant cells invasion into lymphatic vessels and obstruction of lymphatic flow by lymph node metastatic infiltration are thought to explain chyloabdomen formation during neoplastic disease (Al-Busafi et al, 2014).…”

“…Management of chyloabdomen first relies on treatment of the underlying cause when possible, as in this case pancreatic carcinoma. Pancreatic carcinoma is an uncommon tumor in cats with a high metastatic rate and a poor prognosis (Linderman et al, 2013). Abdominal effusion is a negative prognostic indicator, with a median survival time of only 30 days (Linderman et al, 2013).…”

Exocrine Pancreas in Cats With Diabetes Mellitus

“…A recent study showed that tumors of the exocrine pancreas can predispose cats to DM. 12 It is therefore possible that the pancreatic adenocarcinoma seen in our study caused DM by infiltrating and disrupting viable islets.…”