Introduction

It remains unclear whether radiotherapy (RT) or chemotherapy should be preferentially used as the first-line treatment for cats with nasal lymphoma (NLSA).

Methods

We retrospectively evaluated 46 cats with NLSA, of which 32 and 14 cats received RT alone, and first-line chemotherapy followed by RT, respectively. The treatment response, metastasis incidence rate, and overall survival (OS) were compared between the two groups.

Results

There were no significant differences in the demographic characteristics between both groups. The clinical signs improved in 88% (28/32) of cats that received RT and 79% (11/14) of those that received chemotherapy and RT. The overall response rate was 94% in cats that received RT, with 13 having a complete response (CR), 17 a partial response (PR), and 2 stable disease (SD). The overall response rate was 86% in cats that received chemotherapy and RT, with 4 having a CR, 8 a PR, and 2 SD. There were no significant differences in the treatment response between the groups. OS significantly increased in the cats that received RT (median: 360 days, 58–1095) compared to the cats that received chemotherapy and RT (median: 240 days, 36–1095). The incidence rate of metastasis significantly increased in 75% (9/12), and 38% (11/29) of the cats that received chemotherapy and RT, and RT, respectively. OS significantly decreased in 25 cats with metastasis (median: 191 days, 36–484) compared to the 21 cats without metastasis (median: 482 days, 120–1,095).

Conclusion

Cats with NLSA might have more improvement in their clinical outcomes with RT rather than chemotherapy.

Funding Information

The author(s) disclose receipt of no financial support for the research.