Diagnosis and Treatment of Kidney (Renal Cell) Cancer

New kidney cancer cases in the U.S. per year number around 36,000. Kidney cancer is twice as common in men than in women, and the incidence for African-American men is greater than for other races.

Renal cell carcinoma begins in the cells that form the lining of the small tubules of the nephron (the structural and functional unit of the kidney, numbering a million or more), and accounts for 90% of all kidney cancers.

Transitional cell carcinoma (urothelial carcinoma) represents only 5% to 10% of all kidney cancers. These tumors start in the renal pelvis, where the ureter (a tube that carries urine from the kidneys for storage in the bladder) joins the kidney.

Wilm’s tumor is a malignant tumor of the kidney composed of embryonic elements that mostly affects young children. Approximately 5% of kidney cancers are Wilm’s tumors.

Renal sarcomas begin with the kidney’s connective tissue and represent less than 1% of all kidney tumors.

Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Risk Factors

Symptoms of kidney cancer may include blood in the urine, pain in the lower back, unexplained weight loss, painful or frequent urination or extreme tiredness. Early diagnosis results in a high cure rate. Diagnosis may include blood and urine lab tests, intravenous pyelogram (IVP), renal angiography, or other imaging tests. Sometimes a biopsy is required for diagnosis.

Risk factors can include gender, smoking, chemical exposure, gene mutation diseases, obesity, high blood pressure, high-fat diet, family history, or long-term dialysis. A risk factor for transitional cell carcinoma is long-term prescription or over-the-counter analgesia (pain medication) use.

Stanford Cancer Center Expertise

The Urologic Oncology Program at the Stanford Cancer Center combines physicians from the departments of urology, medical oncology, and radiation oncology. Having doctors will these specialties together in the same program makes your visits easier and allows easy scheduling of sequential appointments.

Stanford physicians have access to state-of-the art treatments and technologies. For excample, your urologic oncologist may find that you are a candidate for stereotactic radiation treatment with the CyberKnife, which more precisely delivers radiation doses for less time than prior technologies available.

Your doctor may also suggest participating in other Stanford ongoing clinical trials. Other treatments you will find available through the Urologic Oncology Program include chemotherapy, hormone therapy, immunotherapy, surgery, and arterial embolization (a method to shrink the kidney tumor).