PROGNOSIS FACTORS FOR SURVIVAL IN CATS AFTER REMOVAL OF A PRIMARY LUNG-TUMOR - 21 CASES (1979-1994)

Objective-To identify possible prognostic factors for survival time in cats with a primary lung tumor after surgical excision. Study Design- Retrospective clinical study. Animal Population-21 cats with histologi cally confirmed primary lung tumors removed surgically. Methods-Medica l records for cats treated between 1979 and 1994 at 14 participating v eterinary referral hospitals were reviewed. Results-After surgical res ection and recovery, 18 cats died from metastatic disease with a media n survival time of 115 days (range, 13 to 1,526 days). Three cats were lost to follow-up at 119 days, 251 days, and 410 days after the surgi cal procedure. Contingency table analysis to determine if an associati on existed between clinical findings (breed, age, gender, body weight, clinical signs, duration of clinical signs, and radiographic findings ) or histological features and survival time was performed. Only histo logical morphology of the primary lung tumor showed a significant asso ciation with survival time. Twelve cats with moderately differentiated tumors had a significantly longer survival time (median, 698 days; ra nge, 19 to 1,526 days) than the nine cats with poorly differentiated t umors (median, 75 days; range, 13 to 634 days). Conclusions - Surgical resection of a solitary primary lung tumor in cats is indicated. Clin ical Relevance-A poor prognosis for long-term survival is warranted fo r those cats having a poorly differentiated primary lung tumor. (C)Cop yright 1998 by The American College of Veterinary Surgeons.