Small animal veterinary case study – Amber the domestic shorthair

History & signalment
Amber is a 12yr FN DSH. She was presented with a 4-month history of vomiting. Vomiting occurred once or twice daily and consisted of a mixture of food and fluid. Occasional diarrhoea was also reported but this was infrequent. Appetite was good but there had been some weight loss. The cat was reported to be somewhat less active.

Physical examination findings
On clinical exam Amber was quiet but responsive and in good body condition at 3.8kg. Mucous membranes were pink and moist and CRT was less than 2 seconds. Thoracic auscultation was unremarkable. On abdominal palpation organomegaly was detected, thought to be a thickened stomach.
Haematology and biochemistry were unremarkable and TT4 was within normal limits.

Imaging examination findings
Excellent quality survey radiographs were obtained by the referring vet. These showed a soft tissue density in the cranioventral abdomen caudal to the liver. Small intestinal loops were displaced ventrally and to the right. The lateral thoracic radiograph was mostly unremarkable with no evidence of pulmonary parenchymal disease.

An abdominal ultrasound confirmed that the gastric wall was markedly thickened and had lost its normal layering. Wall thickness was around 1.39cm for approximately 50% of the body of the stomach. Two local lymph nodes, including the gastrosplenic lymph node, were enlarged and hypoechoic. The remainder of the scan was unremarkable.