My Pet World: Research may soon lead to treatment for cats with FIP
Susan Gingrich is upbeat about the most devastating illness in cats, feline infectious peritonitis (FIP). Gingrich established the Bria Fund with the Winn Feline Foundation 10 years ago after her little Birman, Bria, succumbed to the fatal disease.
"We felt helpless. I just wanted to do something, to find a way to support cat owners who are at a loss about what to do when their kittens are diagnosed, and to support research," Gingrich recalls.
With initial "seed funding" from her brother, Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, she created the Bria Fund through the non-profit Winn Feline Foundation, which funds cat health studies. Supporters from around the globe have raised nearly $350,000.
FIP, which occurs most often in kittens, is a caused by a mutation of the otherwise benign corona virus. The virus can make cats feel lousy and cause tummy upset and/or a slight fever, but usually dissipates quickly, even without veterinary intervention. However, sometimes, for reasons still unknown, the benign virus transforms inside the cat into the fatal immune-mediated disease called FIP.
"No question, the Bria Fund is quite remarkable," says Dr. Vicki Thayer, executive director of the Winn Feline Foundation. "Susan has created distinct channels for cat owners around the world to get information and support, and she's mobilized efforts to raise money for research."
"Those of us who've had cats who died of FIP have become a kind of online family," says Gingrich, a retired nurse from Loudon, TN. "The emotional toll of seeing what happens to these kittens is heartbreaking."
Once thought rare, FIP turns out to be somewhat common. According to Dr. Niels Pedersen, professor emeritus at the University of California-Davis Veterinary School, cats under about 3 years old (particularly kittens) have anywhere from a 1-in-100 to 1-in-300 chance of developing FIP. While that may sound insignificant, about a million cats die annually of FIP.
Over the years, Winn Feline Foundation has funded the work of Pedersen, a legend in veterinary medicine, more than any other FIP researcher. Dr. Diane Addie, another researcher, says via email from her home in France, "My own work on FIP brought me into his (Pedersen's) sphere and he gallantly and generously invited this unknown upstart from Scotland to participate in the first ever FIP symposium hosted at UCD."
Pedersen has called Addie a "very stubborn lady," for her steadfast belief about how the disease is formed in cats. Recent studies by researchers at the Cornell Feline Health Center, supported by the Bria Fund, demonstrate that Pedersen was correct all along.
"It's a huge advance to recognize how FIP targets cells," Thayer adds.
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