Countries: ▼

Renal Cell Carcinoma

Renal cell cancer (also called kidney cancer or renal cell adenocarcinoma) is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells are found in the lining of tubules (very small tubes) in the kidney1.

Kidney cancer accounts for 5% and 3% of all newly diagnosed adult cancer in men and women, respectively, with over 90% of kidney cancers being RCC. This makes RCC one of the top 10 most common cancers worldwide2,3

There may be no signs or symptoms in the early stages. Some of the most common symptoms may include1:

  • Blood in the urine
  • A lump in the abdomen
  • A pain in the side that doesn't go away
  • Loss of appetite
  • Weight loss for no known reason
  • Anemia.

In order to diagnose and stage RCC, imaging (CT, MRI, ultrasound) is used, followed by a biopsy or assessment of a nephrectomy specimen to determine the subtype of RCC.2,3

After renal cell cancer has been diagnosed, tests are done to find out if cancer cells have spread within the kidney or to other parts of the body. The following stages are used to determine the severity of renal cell cancer upon diagnosis1:

  • Stage I
  • Stage II
  • Stage III
  • Stage IV

 

References:
1 https://www.cancer.gov/types/kidney/patient/kidney-treatment-pdq#:~:text=Renal%20cell%20cancer%20(also%20called,filter%20and%20clean%20the%20blood.
2 Escudier et al. Renal cell carcinoma: ESMO Clinical Practice Guidelines for diagnosis, treatment and follow-up. Annals of Oncology 2016; 27(suppl. 5): v58–v68.
3 Hsieh et al. Renal cell carcinoma. Nat Rev Dis Primers 2017; 3: 17009. doi:10.1038/nrdp.2017.9.