can cats smell cancer

Cats have an acute sense of smell with a well-developed olfactory system, which could theoretically allow them to detect changes in a person's scent caused by cancer. There are anecdotal reports of cats showing unusual behavior like pawing or sniffing specific body areas of their owners before a cancer diagnosis, possibly detecting volatile organic compounds or odor changes related to tumor necrosis. However, unlike dogs, cats have not been scientifically proven or extensively studied for cancer detection through smell, and no controlled clinical trials have validated this ability yet. Cats' potential to detect cancer remains biologically plausible but scientifically unproven, and any unusual behavior by cats should prompt medical evaluation but not be considered a diagnostic tool itself.