Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Lymphocytosis in cats: types and what to expect
By Rout, Emily D et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2020·Department of Microbiology, United States·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Immunophenotypic characterization and clinical outcome in cats with lymphocytosis.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of cats with high lymphocyte counts (lymphocytosis) was studied to understand the different types of lymphocyte expansions and their outcomes. The researchers found that cats with non-cancerous lymphocyte increases, particularly those with B-cell or mixed lymphocyte types, tended to be younger and lived longer. In contrast, cats with certain cancerous lymphocyte types, especially CD4+ T cells, had shorter survival times, particularly if they showed signs of abdominal swelling or intestinal issues. Overall, the study highlighted the importance of identifying the type of lymphocyte expansion to better predict the health outcomes for affected cats.
People also search for: cat lymphocytosis treatment · cat high lymphocyte count causes · cat cancer survival rates
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Lymphocytosis is relatively common in cats, but few studies describe lymphocyte populations or the clinical course associated with different immunophenotypic expansions. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: We hypothesized that cats frequently develop non-neoplastic lymphocytosis and that different neoplastic immunophenotypes have variable prognoses. We aimed to characterize the lymphocyte expansions in a large population of cats with lymphocytosis and to assess clinical presentation and outcome in a subset. ANIMALS: Three cohorts of cats older than 1 year with lymphocytosis (>6000/μL) were examined to define immunophenotypic categories (n = 146), evaluate outcome (n = 94), and determine prevalence of immunophenotypes (n = 350). METHODS: Retrospective study of cats with blood submitted for flow cytometry. Medical records (n = 94) were reviewed for clinical data, treatment, and survival information. RESULTS: Five major immunophenotypic categories were identified: B cell, heterogeneous (≥2 lineages expanded), CD4+ T cell, CD4-CD8- (double negative [DN]) T cell, and CD5-low-expressing T cell. B-cell and heterogeneous phenotypes were more consistent with a non-neoplastic process, having polyclonal antigen receptor gene rearrangements, younger age at presentation, lower lymphocyte counts, and prolonged survival. The neoplastic phenotypes, CD4+ T cell, DN T cell, and CD5 low T cell, had different median survival times (752 days [n = 37], 271 days [n = 7], 27.5 days [n = 12], respectively). Among CD4+ T-cell cases, cats with abdominal lymphadenopathy, intestinal involvement, or both and females had shorter survival. Among 350 cats with lymphocytosis, CD4+ T-cell lymphocytosis was most common, followed by heterogeneous and B-cell phenotypes. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Neoplastic CD4+ T-cell lymphocytosis is common in cats and has a prolonged clinical course compared to aberrant T-cell phenotypes. Cats with heterogeneous and B-cell lymphocyte expansions commonly have non-neoplastic disease.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31693230/