Renal cancer, or kidney cancer, affects the kidneys, the pair of organs responsible for filtering waste and excess water from the blood. Each year, approximately 52,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with the disease, according to the American Urological Association (AUA) Foundation. Treatment of renal cancer involves removing the tumor and all or part of the affected kidney.
Identification
The kidneys are located in the abdomen on either side of the spinal column. After the kidneys filter the blood, the resulting urine flows through tubes called ureters into the bladder. The kidneys are also responsible for regulating blood pressure, preventing acid buildup, regulating electrolytes and producing a hormone that stimulates red blood cell productions, according to the AUA Foundation. When abnormal cells begin to grow out of control in a kidney, a cancerous tumor forms. Depending on the size and location of the tumor, normal kidney function may be affected.
Symptoms
There may be no outward symptoms of kidney cancer in the early stages of the disease, according to the Mayo Clinic. As the tumor grows, renal cancer symptoms may include occasional fever, weight loss, back pain below the ribs or pain in the side, fatigue and a lump in the abdomen or side. Urine may appear red, pink or rusty if a tumor is present.
Types
Renal pelvis carcinoma develops in the center of the kidney, while renal cell carcinoma forms in the lining of the tubes that filter blood. Transitional cell carcinoma, a type of cancer that affects the ureters, may start in the kidneys. Children may be affected by a rare form of kidney cancer called Wilm's tumor, or nephroblastoma. Wilm's tumor is the most common type of malignant kidney tumor in children and rarely occurs after age 6, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Risk Factors
Risk factors for developing renal cancer include uncontrolled high blood pressure, obesity and receiving dialysis treatments for many years. The National Cancer Institute reports men are more likely to develop kidney cancer than women and smokers are twice as likely as nonsmokers to develop kidney cancer. People who have a rare disease called Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome may be more likely to develop kidney cancer. The syndrome causes tumors to form in the kidney, brain, eyes and other areas of the body. Iron and steel workers who work with coke ovens are more likely to develop kidney cancer, as are people who are exposed to cadmium or asbestos.
Treatment
Surgery is used to remove the tumor or the entire kidney and nearby lymph nodes if the tumor is large. If surgery is considered too dangerous, other procedures can be used to destroy cancerous tissue. During radiofrequency ablation, cancer cells are burned and destroyed by inserting a special needle into the tumor through the skin. A similar procedure called cryoablation can be used to freeze cells. Embolization is used to clog the main blood vessel leading to the kidney, depriving the tumor of nutrients and oxygen, according to the Mayo Clinic. Immunotherapy drugs may also be used to trigger the body's immune system to attack cancer cells.
