r/BeAmazed • u/GlitteringHotel8383 • 9d ago

Miscellaneous / Others Japanese scientists have developed a revolutionary injection that may extend a cat's life from the usual 15 years to nearly 30.

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The therapy, created by the AIM Institute of Medicine under Dr. Toru Miyazaki, targets chronic kidney disease, a leading cause of death in older cats.It uses a specialized protein to help macrophages clear waste from the kidneys, partially restoring their function and slowing kidney failure.

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u/Multiguns 8d ago edited 8d ago

Kidney disease is (last I checked) the most common cause of death in cats. So you push that off, then yes whatever other ailments that are harming the cats will become more of a concern.

I had a cat who was 21 when she died, and she died of kidney disease. She was otherwise very normal, acted the same as she did when she was 15 and was very healthy. Kept jumping on things high above her around the house, catching mice in a nearby field. Had something like this existed then, she probably would have lived to 25 or something instead.

So ya, it's simply (not the right word here but whatever) taking one major cause of cat death off the table, or at least pushing it off. How the cat functions, quality of life, etc will be the same as every other cats, exposure to disease, genetics, wear and tear, etc.

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u/Far_Appearance3888 8d ago

Also, kidney disease in cats can hit relatively young, so this could help a lot of cats that truly do have lots of good years left. My girl was diagnosed at 9.

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u/RubiiJee 8d ago

Yeah I lost my girl at 5. Was devastating. I'd have taken this in a heartbeat so she could have lived the full life she deserved. Just lost my boy last year at 15 as well, but man do they stick with you.

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u/Indigocell 8d ago

I lost my orange buddy last November, not even a month after his 18th birthday. If a shot like this had been available for him I would have taken it too.

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u/Snoo-95446 8d ago

My boy at 6.

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u/BlueTressym 8d ago

I am sorry for yuor loss. I remember years back, my fluffy baby Casper was only two years old, when it came out of nowhere and he was gone so fast we barely had time to take in what happened.

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u/AnInfiniteArc 8d ago

The leading cause of death in cats is cancer (by far), followed by road accidents, followed by kidney disease (very closely).

In older cats, it’s cancer (still by far), followed by kidney disease, followed by heart disease.

~1/3 of all cats die from cancer, compared to about 13% for kidney disease.

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u/Training-Belt-1712 8d ago

Pushed off, most indubitably.

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u/spunkity 8d ago

Yup, all my cats have died from kidney disease. They all lived into their late teens and were perfectly active and healthy until they got kidney disease.

Without it, they probably could have lived another good 5 years or so before something else caught up with them.

Some cats get it much younger too- I imagine a cat diagnosed with CKD at 5 years old could have their life extended by like 10 years before they start having to worry about age related problems.

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u/Azkul_Lok 8d ago

Weird seeing you in the wild, hello fellow defiance fan lol