A study beginning in April at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine seeks to answer that question. Researchers hope they can establish, for the first time, why cats with cancer lose weight during treatment. Researchers will provide a specially created, nutritionally balanced diet and treatment for 100 cats during the one-year study. They are asking pet owners whose cats have any form of cancer to consider taking part in the study. There is little solid nutritional information that veterinarians can go by to help counter the common problem of weight loss during cancer treatment, said Nicole Ehrhart, a veterinary surgical oncologist and lead researcher on the project.
Cats are obligate carnivores.
The way they absorb nutrients, and the way they can potentially lose nutrients, during disease is very different than it is with a lot of other animals. The evidence suggests that animals losing weight are less able to fight cancer effectively, and pet owners often link their cat's appetite to its overall sense of well being. Owners often give up and choose euthanasia when a cat's weight loss suggests a declining quality of life. Before, during and after treatment, researchers will monitor body weight ratios, the percent of body fat, the percent of lean muscle mass, protein contents and more. They hope to identify what patterns exist in the cats' metabolic rates and eating patterns and link them with specific kinds of treatment, which may include surgery to remove a tumor, radiation and chemotherapy.