# Cat urine may hold an early warning of kidney disease

Source: [Earth.com](https://www.earth.com/science/cat-urine-may-hold-an-early-warning-of-kidney-disease/) · 2026-11-10 · Earth & Climate
Page: https://themorning.science/story/cat-urine-may-hold-an-early-warning-of-kidney-disease-0f8d67bb67737bce
Kind: research · Impact: medium

## In brief

- Kidney disease is common in cats but is often diagnosed late.
- The usual blood test may still look normal after a cat has lost more than a third of its kidney function.
- Researchers report that a protein called MMP-7 was higher in cat urine, a possible early warning sign.

## Why it matters

If validated, a urine marker could allow kidney disease in cats to be detected before blood tests show it, giving earlier chances to intervene.

## Coverage

- [Cat urine may hold an early warning of kidney disease](https://www.earth.com/science/cat-urine-may-hold-an-early-warning-of-kidney-disease/) — Earth.com, 2026-11-10

Tags: cats, kidney disease, veterinary medicine, biomarkers, urine test

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Brief generated by AI (claude-haiku-5-5) from the reporting listed under Coverage. Headlines belong to their publishers. The Morning Science – https://themorning.science