Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Feline inflammatory gut masses with eosinophils and fibrosis
By Craig, L E et al.·Published in Veterinary pathology·2009·Department of Pathobiology, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Feline gastrointestinal eosinophilic sclerosing fibroplasia.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of cats with gastrointestinal issues had a specific type of inflammatory mass in their intestines, often found near the stomach or colon. Many of these cats showed signs of inflammation and had high levels of certain white blood cells called eosinophils. When treated with prednisone, a steroid that reduces inflammation, these cats lived longer compared to those who received other treatments. This condition can sometimes be confused with cancer, so it's important for pet owners to be aware of the symptoms and seek veterinary advice if their cat is having gastrointestinal problems.
People also search for: cat gastrointestinal mass treatment · cat stomach inflammation symptoms · prednisone for cat intestinal issues
Abstract
A retrospective study of cases of a unique intramural inflammatory mass within the feline gastrointestinal tract was performed in order to describe and characterize the lesion. Twenty-five cases were identified from archival surgical and postmortem tissues. The lesion most often occurred as an ulcerated intramural mass at the pyloric sphincter (n = 12) or the ileocecocolic junction or colon (n = 9); the remaining cases were in the small intestine. Seven cases also had lymph node involvement. The lesions were characterized by eosinophilic inflammation, large reactive fibroblasts, and trabeculae of dense collagen. Intralesional bacteria were identified in 56% of the cases overall and all of the ileocecocolic junction and colon lesions. Fifty-eight percent of cats tested had peripheral eosinophilia. Cats treated with prednisone had a significantly longer survival time than those receiving other treatments. We propose that this is a unique fibroblastic response of the feline gastrointestinal tract to eosinophilic inflammation that in some cases is associated with bacteria. The lesion is often grossly and sometimes histologically mistaken for neoplasia.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19112117/