Clinicopathological Findings in 12 Cases of Feline Thymic Lymphoma

Abstract

Twelve cases of feline thymic lymphoma were studied clinicopathologically. The cats in this study ranged from 8 months to 8 years in age (mean: 2.3). Hematological abnormalities included anemia (2 cats, 16.7%), leukopenia (1 cat, 8.3%) and leukocytosis (4 cats, 33.3%). Neoplastic cells in the peripheral blood were observed in 6 cats (50%). During the serum investigation, hypogammaglobulinemia (5 cats, 50%) and elevated lactate dehydrogenase (LDH)(6 cats, 67%) were observed. Since all 6 cats with elevated serum LDH levels had neoplastic cells in their peripheral blood, there seemed to be a correlation between the elevation of the serum LDH level and blood involvement. According to the WHO clinical staging, these coses were categorized into stage I or II (3 cats), stageIV (3 cats) and stage V (6 cats). Nineof the 10 cats treated with induction chemotherapy experienced a remission. Survival time ranged from 10 to 330 days (median: 69 days). The survival times of the cats in stages I and II were significantly longer than those of the cats in stages IV and V.-Key