Kidney Cancer accounts for 2-3% of all new cancers.  It is more common in men than women and can be primary (originating in the kidney) or secondary (spreading from a cancer elsewhere in the body).  It is more likely to occur in people over the age of fifty (50).  Risk factors for kidney cancer include:

Cigarette smoking

Obesity

Exposure to cadmium, asbestos or petroleum by products

Genetic Factors

Acquired cystic disease of the kidney

Symptoms of kidney cancer often don't appear in the early stages.  It is not uncommon for the diaghosis of kidney cancer to come as a result of having a CT scan or ultrasound for a different reason.  When Symptoms do occur, they often present as blood in the urine, flank pain or a mass felt in the abdomen.

The most common type of kidney cancer is renal cell cancer.  This cancer occurs in the renal cortex, the outer layer of the kidney.  There are several different types of renal cell cancer including papillary, chromophobe and collecting duct tumors.   Transitional cell cancer is a type of kidney cancer that is related to bladder cancer and occurs in the renal pelvic.  Wilms tumor is a type of kidney cancer that occurs mainly in children and usually has an excellent prognosis.

Kidney cancer is diagnosed by CT scan, a type of x-ray.  Other tests may also be done to evaluate whether the cancer has spread to the bones, lungs or other parts of the body.  This is called metastasis of the cancer.   If diagnostic tests are stongly suggestive that a mass in the kidney is cancerous the usual treatment is to surgically remove the kidney.  This is called a radical nephrectomy.  If the cancer is small enough, only part of the kidney is removed.  This is called a partial nephrectomy.  If surgery is not done, it may be possible to use cryoablation (freezing the cancer) or radiofrequency ablation (using radiofrequency energy to destroy the tumor).  Depending on how advance the kidney cancer is, chemo therapy may be used.  radiation therapy may be used when the cancer spreads to other parts of the body.

After the kidney cancer is treated it is important to follow up at regular intervals to monitory the function of a person's remaining kidney and also to evaluate whether or not the cancer has reoccurred or metastasized to other parts of the body.  Physical exam, blood tests and CT scans are all part of this process.

As with all cancers, the prognosis for kidney cancer depends on how early the cancer is found, the stage of the cancer and whether or not it has metastasized to other body parts.  Early stage kidney cancer has an excellent prognosis if surgery is done, with a five (5) year survival rate of over 90%.  Prompt evaluation of blood in the urine or persistent flank pain is important for detecting kidney cancer.  For more information on kidney cancer go to: http://www.kidneycancer.org/ or http://www.cancer.gov/.