Fibrosarcoma - Cat Cancer Alert

By Charlene Rennings

Many pet owners are worried that their cats or dogs will get fibrosarcoma or fibroblastic sarcoma. A fibrosarcoma cat patient exhibits malignant tumors that form in the skin. It is a type of soft-tissue sarcoma that can develop because of vaccines.

The tumor is found at the site where the vaccines are usually administered. Whenever a cat is brought to the vet for vaccines like rabies and feline leukemia virus, you are increasing the risk of having fibrosarcoma in your pet. The tumors that grow are often difficult to treat and they are a lot of incidences where the condition recurs. It is a great area of concern because the cat can die of this disease.

This invasive cancer originates from the fibrous connective tissues and could spread to other areas of the body. There are three known causes of this musculoskeletal cancer:

First, as mentioned before, is the use of vaccines. As such, fibrosarcoma is also known as vaccine induced sarcoma or vaccinosarcoma. Next, it can be due to old age since most cats that have it are already old. The affected areas, which include the trunk legs, and ears, often have irregularly shaped mass inside. Younger cats can also be diagnosed with fibrosarcoma caused by the feline sarcoma virus or FeSV. This one occurs in multiple tumor masses instead of one lump.

The telltale signs if you already have a fibrosarcoma cat patient are if there is swelling and if they get weaker and lame by the day. The Veterinarian will conduct physical examination and several tests including urinalysis, complete blood count, biochemical profile, biopsy of the mass, x-ray of the lump, and x-ray of the lungs to check if the cancer has already spread.

Treatment is often in the form of surgery or possibly amputation of the limb in some cases. This disease needs to be checked because it usually recurs. The cat undergoes radiation therapy after.

Your cat can't tell you when it is sick. It is up to you to learn about the various cat health problems and what you can do about it before it's too late. Visit CatHealthProblems.org.