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February 19, 2026<\/p>\n
2 min read<\/p>\n
Add Us On Google<\/span>Add SciAm<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n Cats\u2019 cancer genes show striking similarity to humans\u2019<\/p>\n Researchers sequenced the genomes of tumors from almost 500 domestic cats and found remarkable parallels with human and dog cancers<\/p>\n By K. R. Callaway edited by Claire Cameron<\/span><\/p>\n Targeted treatments for cats with cancer might be on the horizon.<\/p>\n No one wants to think about the death of a beloved pet. But because cancer is one of the leading causes of death for our companion animals, detecting cancer early and finding treatments is imperative.<\/p>\n Despite that fact that almost as many cats contract cancer during their lifetime as dogs do, research into cancers that affect our pets has tended to focus more on dogs than cats.<\/p>\n A new study could help close some of that gap. Senior author Louise van der Weyden, a staff scientist at the Wellcome Sanger Institute in England, and a team of researchers sequenced the genomes of tumors from almost 500 domestic cats. Their findings, published today in Science, show that the genes that drive cancer in cats are remarkably similar to those that do so in humans. And the results could open the door to more targeted cancer treatments for both cats and humans.<\/p>\n If you’re enjoying this article, consider supporting our award-winning journalism by subscribing. By purchasing a subscription you are helping to ensure the future of impactful stories about the discoveries and ideas shaping our world today.<\/p>\n \u201cKnowledge of the genetic alterations driving the tumor are essential for decision-making for which targeted therapies to use,\u201d van der Weyden says. \u201cNow we have this information for our feline friends.\u201d<\/p>\n The study encompassed 13 distinct types of tumors originating from different parts of the body, including the skin, bones, tissue and blood. The researchers combed the data for mutations that may have caused the tumors to form and found that cancer-causing genes in cats are strikingly similar in number and variety to those in humans. For example, a gene called TP53 was found to be the most frequently mutated gene in the cats\u2019 tumors; the same gene is implicated in various human cancers, including breast cancer and bone sarcoma.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you look at a cat, then look at a human, we really don\u2019t look anything like each other,\u201d van der Weyden says. \u201cBut when you think about the fact that human and cat genomes are remarkably similar…, it\u2019s probably not that surprising but still super cool to see.\u201d What may actually be surprising is that cats and humans share about 90 percent of their respective genomes.<\/p>\n The researchers hope that the work will inspire further studies of cat-specific cancer genes and pave the way for better treatments for our pets.<\/p>\n \u201cDevelopment of targeted therapies takes time,\u201d van der Weyden says. \u201cHowever, it is the first critical, essential step that is needed.\u201d<\/p>\n If you enjoyed this article, I\u2019d like to ask for your support. 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I hope it does that for you, too.<\/p>\n If you subscribe to Scientific American<\/span>, you help ensure that our coverage is centered on meaningful research and discovery; that we have the resources to report on the decisions that threaten labs across the U.S.; and that we support both budding and working scientists at a time when the value of science itself too often goes unrecognized.<\/p>\n In return, you get essential news, captivating podcasts, brilliant infographics, can’t-miss newsletters, must-watch videos, challenging games, and the science world’s best writing and reporting. You can even gift someone a subscription.<\/p>\n There has never been a more important time for us to stand up and show why science matters. I hope you\u2019ll support us in that mission.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" February 19, 2026 2 min read Add Us On GoogleAdd SciAm Cats\u2019 cancer genes show striking similarity to humans\u2019 Researchers sequenced the genomes of tumors from almost 500 domestic cats and found remarkable parallels with human and dog cancers By K. R. Callaway edited by Claire Cameron Targeted treatments for cats with cancer might be<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":44784,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[50],"tags":[654,6608,8024,3698,241,23183,4399],"class_list":{"0":"post-44783","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-cancer","9":"tag-cats","10":"tag-genes","11":"tag-humans","12":"tag-show","13":"tag-similarity","14":"tag-striking"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44783","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=44783"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/44783\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/44784"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=44783"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=44783"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=44783"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}On supporting science journalism<\/h2>\n
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