Keywords
How to Cite
Abstract
Alimentary lymphocytic lymphoma (AL) is the most prevalent neoplastic subtype in cats. T-cell neoplasms have been associated with eosinophil chemotaxis and, consequently, paraneoplastic hypereosinophilic syndrome. This report describes a case of marked hypereosinophilia in a cat with AL, consistent with a paraneoplastic hypereosinophilic syndrome, based on clinical findings. A 13-year-old neutered male Persian cat, negative for feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and feline leukemia virus (FeLV), with a history of frequent vomiting, presented with a mild increase in abdominal volume on palpation, suggestive of mesenteric lymph node enlargement. Blood profile revealed marked leukocytosis (81,500 leukocytes/μL) due to severe eosinophilia (69,000/μL), consisting exclusively of segmented eosinophils. Abdominal ultrasonography showed lymphadenomegaly and increased echogenicity of the meso-omentum, suggestive of an infiltrative neoplastic process. Following suspicion of lymphoma, intestinal biopsy and bone marrow (BM) sampling were performed. BM evaluation was consistent with a myeloproliferative process, with eosinophilic lineage involvement. Histopathological examination of the duodenum, jejunum, and mesenteric lymph node confirmed the diagnosis of AL. Treatment with prednisolone, chlorambucil, and cobalamin was instituted. One month after treatment, the cat was clinically stable, with a total eosinophil count of 22,000/μL. After six months, eosinophil counts decreased to 9,030/μL, and abdominal ultrasonography showed no abnormalities. This report highlights the importance of investigating AL in cats presenting with marked hypereosinophilia.
References
Balan, M., Hope, A., Cassidy, J., McCullough, M., & O’Brien, P. J. (2017). Marked paraneoplastic basophilia accompanying eosinophilia in a cat with alimentary T-cell lymphoma. JFMS Open Reports, 3(2), 2055116917730180. https://doi.org/10.1177/2055116917730180. PMid:28975036.
Barrs, V. R., & Beatty, J. A. (2012). Feline alimentary lymphoma: 1. Classification, risk factors, clinical signs and non-invasive diagnostics. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, 14(3), 182-190. https://doi.org/10.1177/1098612X12439265. PMid:22370860.
Barrs, V. R., Beatty, J. A., McCandlish, I. A., & Kipar, A. (2002). Hypereosinophilic paraneoplastic syndrome in a cat with intestinal T cell lymphosarcoma. The Journal of Small Animal Practice, 43(9), 401-405. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-5827.2002.tb00091.x. PMid:12238505.
Cave, T. A., Gault, E. A., & Argyle, D. J. (2004). Feline epitheliotrophic T-cell lymphoma with paraneoplastic eosinophilia - Immunochemotherapy with vinblastine and human recombinant interferon alpha(2b). Veterinary and Comparative Oncology, 2(2), 91-97. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1476-5810.2004.00042.x. PMid:19379189.
Center, S. A., Randolph, J. F., Erb, H. N., & Reiter, S. (1990). Eosinophilia in the cat: A retrospective study of 312 cases (1975 to 1986). Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association, 26, 349-358.
Cesari, A., Bettini, G., & Vezzali, E. (2009). Feline intestinal T-cell lymphoma: Assessment of morphologic and kinetic features in 30 cases. Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation : Official Publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc, 21(2), 277-279. https://doi.org/10.1177/10406387090 2100221. PMid:19286515.
Cristo, T. G., Biezus, G., Ledo, G., Teixeira, M. B. S., Vavassori, M., Soares, D. R., Saito, M. E., & Casagrande, R. A. (2023). Overview of bone marrow aspiration from 120 cats in different hematological conditions. Veterinary Medicine International, 2023(1), 2493618. https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/2493618. PMid:37649553.
Feldman, B. F., Zinkl, J. G., & Jain, N. C. (2000). Schalm-s veterinary hematology (5th ed.). Lippincott Willians & Wilkins.
Freiche, V., Fages, J., Paulin, M. V., Bruneau, J., Couronné, L., German, A. J., Penninck, D., & Hermine, O. (2021). Clinical, laboratory and ultrasonographic findings differentiating low-grade intestinal T-cell lymphoma from lymphoplasmacytic enteritis in cats. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 35(6), 2685-2696. https://doi. org/10.1111/jvim.16272.
Gelain, M. E., Antoniazzi, E., Bertazzolo, W., Zaccolo, M., & Comazzi, S. (2006). Chronic eosinophilic leukemia in a cat: Cytochemical and immunophenotypical features. Veterinary Clinical Pathology, 35(4), 454-459. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-165X.2006.tb00164.x. PMid:17123254.
Gieger, T. (2011). Alimentary lymphoma in cats and dogs. The Veterinary Clinics of North America. Small Animal Practice, 41(2), 419-432. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cvsm.2011.02.001. PMid:21486644.
Hotta, V. T., Nastari, R. R., Oishi, G. S. L., Kayano, A. E., Leguizamon, J. A. G. O., Rocha, R. G., Mocumbi, A. O., Seguro, F. S., Krieger, J. E., Fernandes, F., & Salemi, V. M. C. (2024). Anormalidades cardíacas nas síndromes hipereosinofílicas. Arquivos Brasileiros de Cardiologia, 121(10), e20240190. https://doi.org/10.36660/ abc.20240190. PMid:39607243.
Kiselow, M. A., Rassnick, K. M., McDonough, S. P., Goldstein, R. E., Simpson, K. W., Weinkle, T. K., & Erb, H. N. (2008). Outcome of cats with low-grade lymphocytic lymphoma: 41 cases (1995-2005). Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 232(3), 405-410. https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.232.3.405. PMid:18241108.
Kiupel, M., Smedley, R. C., Pfent, C., Xie, Y., Xue, Y., Wise, A. G., DeVaul, J. M., & Maes, R. K. (2011). Diagnostic algorithm to differentiate lymphoma from inflammation in feline small intestinal biopsy samples. Veterinary Pathology, 48(1), 212-222. https://doi.org/10.1177/0300985810389479. PMid:21149848.
Lingard, A. E., Briscoe, K., Beatty, J. A., Moore, A. S., Crowley, A. M., Krockenberger, M., Churcher, R. K., Canfield, P. J., & Barrs, V. R. (2009). Low-grade alimentary lymphoma: Clinicopathological findings and response to treatment in 17 cases. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, 11(8), 692-700. https://doi.org/10.1016/j. jfms.2009.05.021. PMid:19576832.
Louwerens, M., London, C. A., Pedersen, N. C., & Lyons, L. A. (2005). Feline lymphoma in the post-feline leukemia virus era. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 19(3), 329-335. https://doi.org/10.1892/0891- 6640(2005)19[329:FLITPL]2.0.CO;2. PMid:15954547.
McNaught, K. A., Morris, J., Lazzerini, K., Millins, C., & José-López, R. (2018). Spinal extradural T-cell lymphoma with paraneoplastic hypereosinophilia in a dog: Clinicopathological features, treatment, and outcome. Clinical Case Reports, 6(6), 999-1005. https://doi.org/10.1002/ccr3.1503. PMid:29881551.
Moore, P. F., Rodriguez-Bertos, A., & Kass, P. H. (2012). Feline gastrointestinal lymphoma: Mucosal architecture, immunophenotype, and molecular clonality. Veterinary Pathology, 49(4), 658-668. https://doi.org/10.1177/0300985811404712. PMid:21505197.
Norsworthy, G. D. (2018). The feline patient (5th ed., 1088 p.). Wiley-Blackwell.
Paulin, M. V., Couronné, L., Beguin, J., Le Poder, S., Delverdier, M., Semin, M. O., Bruneau, J., Cerf-Bensussan, N., Malamut, G., Cellier, C., Benchekroun, G., Tiret, L., German, A. J., Hermine, O., & Freiche, V. (2018). Feline low-grade alimentary lymphoma: An emerging entity and a potential animal model for human disease. BMC Veterinary Research, 14(1), 306. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-018-1635-5. PMid:30305106.
Pope, K. V., Tun, A. E., McNeill, C. J., Brown, D. C., & Krick, E. L. (2015). Outcome and toxicity assessment of feline small cell lymphoma: 56 cases (2000-2010). Veterinary Medicine and Science, 1(2), 51-62. https://doi.org/10.1002/vms3.9. PMid:29067174.
Richter, K. P. (2003). Feline gastrointestinal lymphoma. The Veterinary Clinics of North America. Small Animal Practice, 33(5), 1083-1098. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0195-5616(03)00054-8. PMid:14552162.
Rissetto, K., Villamil, J. A., Selting, K. A., Tyler, J., & Henry, C. J. (2011). Recent trends in feline intestinal neoplasia: An epidemiologic study of 1,129 cases in the Veterinary Medical Database from 1964 to 2004. Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association, 47(1), 28-36. https://doi.org/10.5326/JAAHA-MS-5554.
Stein, T. J., Pellin, M., Steinberg, H., & Chun, R. (2010). Treatment of feline gastrointestinal small-cell lymphoma with chlorambucil and glucocorticoids. Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association, 46(6), 413-417. https://doi.org/10.5326/0460413. PMid:21041334.
Taglinger, K., Helps, C. R., Day, M. J., & Foster, A. P. (2005). Measurement of serum immunoglobulin E (IgE) specific for house dust mite antigens in normal cats and cats with allergic skin disease. Veterinary Immunology and Immunopathology, 105(1-2), 85-93. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vetimm.2004.12.017. PMid:15797478.
Takeuchi, Y., Takahashi, M., Tsuboi, M., Fujino, Y., Uchida, K., Ohno, K., Nakayama, H., & Tsujimoto, H. (2012). Intestinal T-cell lymphoma with severe hypereosinophilic syndrome in a cat. The Journal of Veterinary Medical Science, 74(8), 1057-1062. https://doi.org/10.1292/jvms.12-0064. PMid:22452876.
Thrall, M. A., Weiser, G., Allison, R. W., & Campbell, T. W. (2022).Veterinary hematology, clinical chemistry, and cytology (3rd ed.). Wiley-Blackwell.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2026 Marina Moller Nogueira; Matheus Vilardo Lóes Moreira, Ana Flávia Machado Botelho, Paulo Ricardo Oliveira Paes, Marília Martins Melo