Tolerability and Outcome of Medical Treatment in Feline Nasal Carcinomas: A Multi-Institutional Retrospective Study

Carcinomas are the second most common feline intranasal neoplasm. Various treatment options, including radiotherapy, surgery or a combination of both, have been described, but data on medical therapy efficacy are lacking. This retrospective study evaluated the outcome of cats with nasal carcinoma (NC) treated with antineoplastic treatment. Cats with a histopathological or cytopathological diagnosis of NC were included. Patients receiving antineoplastic treatment were compared to patients receiving palliative treatment alone. Response to therapy, median time to progression (MTTP) and median survival time (MST) were described and compared for both groups. Analysed clinical variables included the presence of epistaxis, facial deformity, stage, use of NSAIDs and previous surgical debulking. Thirty-three cats were included in the study: 18 in the antineoplastic treatment group and 15 in the palliative treatment group. Forty-eight percent of the entire population had worsening of the clinical signs, 36% remained stable and 16% showed clinical benefit. MTTP of the entire population was 104 days and MST was 178 days. No statistically significant differences were found between groups for either MTTP (96 vs. 111 days; p = 0.95) or MST (197 vs. 262; p = 0.77). None of the evaluated clinical variables was associated with outcome. In this retrospective study, antineoplastic treatment was not associated with a detectable survival advantage over palliative treatment alone. These findings should be interpreted cautiously given the small sample size and heterogeneity of treatments administered.