Lumps on cat's abdomen.

Dr. Marie replied:

This is a tough question to answer without being able to see and touch these lumps, but I can give you a few of my thoughts as to what might be going on.

My first concern would be that these could be some type of mammary tumors. However, it's a little bit odd to have two pop up at the same time. Mammary tumors can be hard to diagnose on a cat. They don't tend to shed cells easily so we can't do the normal type of test where we put a needle into the lump and look at the cells. If your vet suspects a mammary tumor then they will likely recommend surgery to remove them. If they are larger than 1/4 inch or and they do turn out to be cancer then sometimes these can be hard to successfully treat. But, if they are small, then having them removed should cure the problem.

Now, if these are large and soft lumps, they still could be just fatty lumps called lipomas. These are nothing to worry about. I would say that most of the time when a client sees big lumps on the abdomen of a cat they end up being benign fatty lumps.

Hernias would be quite unlikely in a cat of this age, especially if there is no trauma.

An abscess could cause a lump but it would be unlikely to be 2 lumps and it should be a little painful.

I think that the vet visit is a good idea. If these are lipomas then a fine needle aspirate which is quite a simple test should give you the answer.

I hope things are alright!

Dr. Marie.

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