Hepatic tumours

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The exploratory laparotomy findings from a 7-year-old female spayed domestic shorthaired cat presented for evaluation of subtle weight loss, elevated liver enzyme activities, and icterus. The results of the histologic examination of the resected hepatic mass were consistent with a benign hepatic adenoma
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The exploratory laparotomy findings from a 7-year-old female spayed domestic shorthaired cat presented for evaluation of subtle weight loss, elevated liver enzyme activities, and icterus. The results of the histologic examination of the resected hepatic mass were consistent with a benign hepatic adenoma
The postmortem findings from the same cat reveal a multilobulated mass involving the liver parenchyma and arising from the biliary epithelium. The results of the histologic examination of the hepatic lesion were consistent with a biliary cystadenocarcinoma.
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The postmortem findings from the same cat reveal a multilobulated mass involving the liver parenchyma and arising from the biliary epithelium. The results of the histologic examination of the hepatic lesion were consistent with a biliary cystadenocarcinoma.
A lateral abdominal radiograph of a 7-year-old female spayed domestic shorthaired cat with a benign hepatic adenoma. A subtle mass effect is present (white arrows)
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A lateral abdominal radiograph of a 7-year-old female spayed domestic shorthaired cat with a benign hepatic adenoma. A subtle mass effect is present (white arrows)

Liver tumours are a relatively infrequent finding in cats compared with tumours associated with the kidney or alimentary tract.

In cats, there appears to be no sex or breed predisposition. More than 50% of feline hepatobiliary tumors are incidental findings at surgery or necropsy[1]. However, malignant tumors arise more commonly in younger cats (average 9 years) compared with benign tumors (average 14.5 years). A significant portion of liver tumours arise in association with lymphoma and are secondary metastases rather than primary hepatic tumours. Although neoplastic processes have been documented in cats as young as 2 years old, hepatobiliary tumors are primarily a disease of older cats (>10 years). In contrast to dogs in which most hepatobiliary tumors are malignant, up to 65% of primary hepatobiliary tumors in cats are benign. In order to help understand the different forms of liver cancers which do occur in cats, an histological classification of hepatic and biliary tumours has been detailed.

Documented factors which may trigger the development of hepatic tumours are many, and include:

  • Viruses - FeLV, FIV
  • Toxins - Aflatoxins are unanimously recognized as hepatic carcinogenic factors[2]. Chemical substances such as benzene derivatives, as well as environmental pollutants, have been experimentally shown to be potentially carcinogenic. Some chemical products, used as insecticides or antiparasitic agents have proved to have oncogenic properties, being in particular hepatocarcinogenic[3].
  • Hepatic trematodes - Parametorchius complexus, Platynosomum spp, Opisthorchis felineus

Clinical signs, if demonstrated by affected cats, are variable and may include anorexia, weight loss, lethargy, intermittent vomiting, and icterus. Although complete staging is typically recommended to confirm metastatic disease in cats, interpret additional hepatic lesions with caution, as 16% to 25% of cats with hepatobiliary tumors may have multiple benign lesions throughout the liver.

Types of hepatic tumours, recognised in cats, include:

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References

  1. ↑ August, JR (2006) Consultations in feline internal medicine. Elsevier Saunders, Philadelphia
  2. ↑ Edds GT (1973) Acute Aflatoxicosis. J Am Vet Med Assoc 4:304–309
  3. ↑ Sarma DSR, Rao PM, Rajalakshmi S (1986) Liver tumour promotion chemicals: models and mechanisms. Cancer Surveys 5(4):781–798
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