Kidney Cancer (Renal Cell Carcinoma)

Kidney cancer also called Renal Cell Carcinoma, is a disease in which cancer cells are found in the lining of tubules (very small tubes) in the kidney.

Types of  Kidney Cancer:

  • The most common type of kidney cancer is called clear cell carcinoma.
  • Other less common types of kidney cancer include Papillary carcinoma and Chromophobe renal carcinoma.
    • These two types of kidney cancer are less aggressive and grow slowly. Many patients can remain well without tumor growth for many years without treatment.
    • In some patients with Chromophobe renal carcinoma, the tumor can actually disappear by it self without treatment.

Treatment:
Early stage kidney cancer:

  • Surgery with removal of the kidney (nephrectomy) by a urologist is considered standard of care.
  • Systemic treatment: Currently there is no proven post-operative therapy that can further improve the outcome of early stage kidney cancer patient.
  • However, there is a clinical trial available that evaluates the potential effectiveness of two drugs Sunitinib and Sorafenib, in reducing the risk of cancer relapse.

Advanced stage kidney cancer:

  • Surgery: In certain situations, cytoreductive surgery (removal of the kidney) by an urologist may still be benficial.
  • Immunotherapy: Kidney cancer appears to be responsive to immunotherapy, such as interferon and interleukin-2.  In some cases, it is effective in controlling cancer.  In rare cases, cure can even be possible.
  • In the past, advanced kidney cancer had very little effective treatment However, in recent years substantial and exciting advances have been achieved in the treatment of metastatic kidney cancer. Many new drugs have been developed. Many more are in experimental clinical trials. This can be discussed further when you see an oncologist.

 

Department Contact List

 

Clinical trials available for treatment of urological cancer at Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara:

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