£15,000 RCVS Trust Award to FAB's Year of the Cat

The RCVS Trust is to invest £15,000 in a new epidemiological project into polycystic kidney disease (PKD) in partnership with the Feline Advisory Bureau (FAB) during FAB's Year of the Cat.

The study will investigate aspects of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease, an untreatable condition that affects 40% of Persians and over 30% of Exotic Shorthairs and often results in chronic renal failure and premature death.

It will be undertaken during 2004, and coincides with the FAB's Year of the Cat 2004 cat care awareness campaign which is sponsored by Nestlé Purina.

To complement this investment in research, the Trust Library and Information Service is offering a 20% discount on its membership fee for all FAB veterinary members who sign up by the beginning of April.

Gerri McHugh, Director at the Trust said, "We are delighted to support FAB's Year of the Cat; it's a purrfect opportunity for us to partner another small veterinary charity, share resources and contribute to the development of knowledge in a currently poorly-understood disease area."

Claire Bessant, Chief Executive at the Feline Advisory Bureau commented, "The support of the RCVS Trust will enable us to continue work begun with the very successful FAB PKD Screening Scheme, first to assess the accuracy of ultrasound examination as a means of diagnosis and then to investigate the rate and pattern of progression of the disease.

"There are still large gaps in our knowledge of PKD and its progression. We are highlighting many aspects of cat health during Year of the Cat and are delighted that we can move forward with PKD with the help of the RCVS Trust."