It is very important that we frequently check the skin of our cats in search of changes in texture, consistency, observation of injuries and detection of parasites, masses or lumps. Lumps on the skin of cats can be harmless or a sign of a malignant tumor that requires urgent veterinary therapy due to the poor prognosis they can have for our little cats.
In this article on our site we will discuss the main causes of lumps in cats, but if you notice that your cat has a lump, you should go to the vet now, without waiting.
Types of lumps in cats
Cats can develop lumps of a different nature. While some will be completely benign lumps of fat, in other cases these lumps contain malignant neoplastic cells with the ability to produce distant tissue metastases, and can be fatal by invading organs essential to life such as the lung.
While lumps in kittens are usually benign processes such as lipomas (fat lumps) or as a result of a blow, fall or fight, lumps in older cats are usually related to processes of a more serious nature. pathological and potentially serious or fatal, such as metastatic malignant tumors.
In general, lumps in cats can be of the following types:
- Fatty lumps: also called lipomas, consist of lumps of mesenchymal origin that contain an exaggerated accumulation of fat cells (adipocytes), which are generally subcutaneous lumps. The consistency of these nodules is soft, firm and spongy, and they can be single or multiple.
- Neoplastic Lumps: Lumps in cats may be due to Malignant tumorsAmong the malignant tumors that can produce lumps in cats we find basal cell tumor, squamous cell carcinoma, fibrosarcoma and mastocytoma.
- Inflammatory lumps: some inflammatory or allergic processes can cause nodulesor bumps on the skin of cats, such as occurs with feline eosinophilic granuloma complex lesions, panniculitis, or urticaria. Blows can also produce bruises that cause lumps in the skin of small felines.
- Infectious Lumps: Nodules on the skin due to infection are often AbscessesIn cats, abscesses or encapsulated accumulations of pus are usually secondary to bites produced in fights between them. On other occasions, they can be bacterial when they are caused by mycobacteria, by Nocardia or Actinomyces in the case of contaminated wounds, or fungal, as in infections by Cryptococcus, dermatophytes or opportunistic saprophytic fungi. Infectious lumps in the nose are usually due to fungal granulomas such as those caused by the fungus Alternaria.
- Cystic lumps: Other times, lumps in cats are due to cystsCysts in cats differ from previous nodules or masses in that they are sacs or cavities generally filled with fluid, although they can also contain air, so they tend to be softer and more mobile and are usually not related with malignant processes.
Symptoms associated with lumps in cats
When detecting a lump in our cat we must determine if there is any sign of systemic or organic disease and if the lump has been growing in size or has remained similar in size. You also have to think about whether the cat has been able to hit or fight with another cat or if it goes outside and has been infected by some pathogenic agent.
Clinical signs associated with benign lumps
In general, "harmless" lumps such as lipomas or fat lumps, bruises or cysts do not cause symptoms, sometimes unless they are so extensive as to interfere with proper organic development or are in sensitive or annoying locations for the animal.
Clinical signs associated with malignant lumps
Conversely, tumors located in areas such as the nose can give rise to signs such as nasal discharge orsneezing and, in the case of cats that are very sensitive to not being able to breathe properly through their nose, they can cause anorexiaLumps related to allergy problems can cause excessive grooming, itchiness and nervousness in the cat. Infectious lumps can itch, ache, and cause fever or warmth in the area.
Malignant tumors that have already metastasized will weaken the cat, showing signs such as weakness, lethargy, anorexia, malnutrition, dehydration and loss of weight, in addition to the signs associated with the organ that has been invaded. For example, if it is the lung, signs such as cough, shortness of breath and lung sounds will appear, or if it is the liver, jaundice and changes in liver enzymes, among others.
Causes of lumps in cats
The causes of lumps in cats are very varied:
- For example, lipomas or fatty lumps can be due to excess weight or impaired detoxification of body toxins due to problems with renal, hepatic or intestinal level.
- In the case of infectious lumps, the cause is colonization of the skin by pathogenic organisms from the group of bacteria or from the fungus, which can spread to other locations and make the cat worse. In some cases, such as dermatophytosis or ringworm, they can be spread to people.
- Inflammatory lumps depend on the immune system of each cat and its sensitivity, and in the case of malignant tumors they usually appear in older cats because their probability increases with age.
- The fights between cats, blows and falls can cause abscesses due to bites and bruises, being the clear cause of these lumps.
How to treat lumps in cats?
Lumps in cats may or may not be treated depending on their origin Generally, hematomas, lipomas and cysts are not treated, being able to have the option of surgically extracting the last two. Instead, infectious lumps should be treated with specific antibiotic or antifungal medication depending on its cause, in addition to using anti-inflammatoriesFor inflammatory diseases it may be necessary to add corticosteroids and for tumor processes a combination or protocols of chemotherapy drugs, generally also requiring tumor removal
If your cat has a lump, we recommend that you go quickly to a veterinary center, where they will make the correct diagnosis of the nature of the lump, its prognosis and treatment. The treatment for lumps in cats, as you can see, depends entirely on the underlying cause, and some are really serious, which is why you should not self-medicate your animal under any circumstances.
