Scientists have taken a major step toward understanding cancer in cats, opening what researchers once described as a genetic "black box."
In a large international study published in Science , researchers genetically analyzed cat cancers on a scale that had not been attempted before. The work could improve cancer care for cats while also helping scientists better understand how some cancers develop in humans and other animals
The researchers also created a freely available resource that other scientists can use to study the genetics of feline cancer
Cancer is one of the leading causes of illness and death in cats, yet scientists have historically known far less about the genetic changes behind feline tumors than they do about cancers in humans or dogs
Dr. Geoffrey Wood, a University of Guelph pathobiology professor and co-senior author of the study, said that gap has now begun to close
"Despite domestic cats being common pets, there was very little known about the genetics of cancer in these animals," Wood says, "until now."
Researchers examined tumor samples from almost 500 domestic cats in five countries, searching for mutations and other genetic changes that help cancers form and grow
Many cancers are driven by changes in certain genes that normally help control how cells grow, divide, repair damage, or die