Treatment Options for Renal or Kidney Cancer
Treatment for renal or kidney cancer generally depends on the type or stage of the cancer, and whether it has spread to other parts of the body. It’s important to determine all treatment options, goals, and possible side effects of treatment before you decide on a regimen. The experts at Tampa Bay Radiation Oncology can answer questions, discuss your options, and help you make a decision about treatment based on your specific case and personal needs.
Treatment for renal or kidney cancer typically involves one or more of the following:
- Active surveillance
- Surgery to remove tumors
- External beam radiation therapy
- Ablation
- Targeted drug therapy
- Chemotherapy
At Tampa Bay Radiation Oncology, we take pride in the time our physicians spend with each patient, before, during and after treatment. We spend time reviewing records, imaging history, the cancer’s progression, the patient’s personal treatment desires and more. We provide care that is tailored to each patient’s specific case and personal treatment desires.
Contact Tampa Bay Radiation Oncology today for more information about kidney and renal cancer and treatment options. Tampa Bay Radiation Oncology has multiple Florida facilities located in the Tampa Bay area in Tampa, FL and Brandon, FL.
About Kidney Cancer
Normally, there are two kidneys, one on each side of the backbone. Renal cell or kidney cancer occurs when malignant cancer cells form in tubules of the kidney, which filter and clean the blood, taking out waste products and making urine. Tests that are used to diagnose kidney, or renal cell cancer, include a physical exam, an ultrasound, blood tests, urinalysis, a CT scan or MRI or a biopsy. After renal cell cancer has been diagnosed, tests are done to determine if the cancer has spread to other parts of the body. Some kidney tumors are benign and do not spread, although they can still grow and cause problems.
Renal cell carcinoma (RCC)
Renal cell carcinoma accounts for roughly 9 out of 10 kidney cancers.
RCC usually grows as a single tumor within a kidney, but sometimes 2 or more tumors occur in one kidney and occasionally tumors occur in both kidneys.
There are two main subtypes of Renal cell carcinoma:
Clear cell renal cell carcinoma accounts for about 7 out of 10 RCC cancers.
Non-clear cell renal cell carcinomas, which include:
- Papillary renal cell carcinoma: The second most common subtype where the cancer forms finger-like projections in the tumor.
- Chromophobe renal cell carcinoma:Accounts for about 5% of RCCs.
- Unclassified renal cell carcinoma:RCC cancers are labeled as unclassified when they don’t fit into other categories or when more than one type of cancer cell is present.
Risk Factors for Kidney Cancer
There are several risk factors that could increase the chance of developing kidney cancer, including:
- Smoking
- High blood pressure
- Obesity
- Genetic factors or family history of kidney cancer
- Frequent use of medicines such as acetaminophen
- Workplace exposure to chemicals such as trichloroethylene
- Gender: men are twice as likely as women to develop RCC or kidney cancer
- Race: African Americans have a slightly higher rate of RCC