EC24F-253: Effects of JAK inhibitor oclacitinib on feline intestinal lymphoma T cells in vitro.

Chronic enteropathy is a disease of the gastrointestinal tract and is a common condition in older cats, causing persistent vomiting, diarrhea or weight loss. A subset of these cats has a form of intestinal cancer, low-grade intestinal T cell lymphoma (LGITL), which is a tumor of T lymphocytes in the small intestine. This form of lymphoma is one of the most frequently diagnosed types of cancer in cats. The majority of cats with LGITL have a mutation in a gene in the JAK/STAT pathway – a pathway commonly mutated in human intestinal T cell lymphoma. In human medicine, therapeutics that inhibit the JAK/STAT pathway are promising novel treatments for intestinal T cell lymphoma. Currently, cats with this tumor are typically treated with corticosteroids and oral chemotherapy. We hypothesize that a novel drug that inhibits the JAK/STAT pathway may offer an alternative and effective therapy for feline patients with LGITL. The goal of this study is to evaluate the effects of a JAK inhibitor drug on tumor T cells from cats with LGITL. The results of this study may improve our understanding of LGITL and lead to the development of a novel therapy for this common tumor.  (Miller Trust) (Joan Miller New Investigator Award)