Clinical characteristics of mammary gland neoplasms in cats

Mammary tumors are one of the most common neoplasms in both cats and dogs, but the degree of malignancy of such neoplasms is higher in cats. Mammary neoplasms (MN) are recorded in cats of different ages and breeds. Today, domestic science does not pay enough attention to the study of MN neoplasias in cats according to clinical and morphological criteria, since incomplete research on sick animals is performed. Single domestic studies, partially, sometimes contradictory, reflect the current state of incomplete diagnostics of the incidence of neoplasia in cats, in particular according to the TNM classification criteria. It should be understood that sick animals with cancer need to undergo a wide range of studies, including preoperative examination, laboratory and additional methods, as well as morphological assessment of neoplasms according to the TNM classification. The purpose of the research was to establish the frequency of spread of cancer diseases in cats in the city of Lviv and the suburban area of the regional center, to find out the nosological structure of mammary tumors depending on breed, age and reproductive status, as well as to study the clinical and morphological characteristics of various forms of neoplasia according to the international clinical TNM classification. The object of the research were cats with mammary tumors (n = 144) of different breeds, aged from 1 to 18 years, who were admitted (in the period from 2019 to 2024) to the clinic of the Department of Surgery, the Vet Center of the Stepan Gzhytskyi National University of Veterinary Medicine and Biotechnologies Lviv and Veterinary Medicine and veterinary clinics of the city of Lviv (“Vetplus”, “Sonovet”, “Vetclinic of Dr. Markevych”). According to the results of the studies, the largest number of cats with cancer was occupied by mammary gland tumors (47.4 %), the second and third places were occupied by tumors of the head and abdominal organs, which accounted for 16.1 % and 15.1 %, respectively. Most often, cats were diagnosed with mammary gland adenocarcinoma (95.1 %), which indicates a clear predominance of malignant neoplasms, and only 4.9 % of neoplasms were benign, in particular proliferative mastopathy, intraductal papilloma, and adenoma. It was found that the cranial (36.8 %) and caudal (38.5 %) abdominal glands were most often affected, while the left and right mammary glands were affected with almost the same frequency. 24 animals (16.7 %) were found with stage I tumor process, respectively 53 (36.8 %) with stage II, 50 (34.7 %) with stage III, and 17 (11.8 %) with stage IV tumor development. The use of additional research methods, such as general and biochemical blood tests, ultrasound examination of the abdominal cavity, and radiography of the chest cavity, is important for establishing the clinical condition of the animal and making a final diagnosis.