Learn About Cancer »Types of Cancer »Genitourinary Cancer

What is Renal Cell Carcinoma?

Renal cell carcinoma, commonly called kidney cancer, is a cancer in the kidney itself. The kidneys are 2 bean-shaped organs to the left and the right of the backbone that filter and clean the blood. Other tumors can develop in the kidney, but the most common type of kidney cancer is renal cell carcinoma. It accounts for more than 90% of all kidney tumors. More than 38,000 Americans will be diagnosed with kidney cancer this year. More than 13,000 die every year because of this type of cancer.

Treatment Options for Kidney Cancer

Patients who have been told elsewhere that their kidneys must be removed have found alternative treatment options at Fox Chase that don't always involve surgery--and almost always allow preservation of their kidney.

Fox Chase physicians have unmatched expertise treating patients with kidney cancer. They carefully examine each case to tailor a personalized treatment plan for you. Traditional kidney cancer treatment requires open surgery to remove the entire kidney, nearby adrenal gland and all surrounding tissue. Other options exist and Fox Chase Cancer Center physicians frequently recommend them, including:

Partial Nephrectomy (Also Known as Nephron-Sparing Surgery)

Partial nephrectomy (also known as nephron-sparing surgery) is surgery that treats the cancer while preserving the normal and unaffected portion of the kidney and maintaining its function.

Today, most kidney cancer patients have an early stage tumor that can be treated with a kidney-sparing approach. Our surgeons are among a select group of physicians in the nation who regularly perform this more specialized and complicated operation, often using a minimally-invasive surgical approach.

Minimally-Invasive Surgery (Laparoscopy)

Fox Chase surgeons are highly skilled and experienced in laparoscopic kidney surgery. They perform nearly 200 cases per year; about 1,000 overall.

Almost all kidney cancer patients are candidates for minimally-invasive surgery, even those with highly complex cases and very large tumors measuring up to 20 centimeters. In fact, many of the patients that come to Fox Chase Cancer Center for laparoscopic kidney surgery were told that they were not candidates for this approach by other, less experienced surgeons.

Minimally-invasive surgery has equal treatment outcomes as traditional open surgery with the added benefit of less bleeding, decreased pain, a shorter recovery period and a quicker return to normal activity.

Hear from real patients. Read about William Krassan, who underwent da Vinci® Robotic-assisted partial nephrectomy.

Newest Chemotherapy Agents and Medical Treatments

Study Compares Newly Approved Drugs for Prevention
of Kidney Cancer Recurrence (Cancer Coming Back)

Advanced cases of kidney cancer often require more than surgery alone to achieve the best long-term results. Fox Chase Cancer Center is a leading hospital for participation in kidney cancer treatment clinical trials. Our physicians are nationally recognized for their contributions in the development of the newest medicines that have proven to be effective in treating advanced and metastatic kidney cancer (cancer that has spread to other parts of the body).

Active Surveillance (Formerly Known as "Watchful Waiting")

At Fox Chase Cancer Center, we recognize each patient with kidney cancer is not the same. As a result, not all patients with kidney cancer are treated the same and not all patients will require or benefit from surgery.

Fox Chase Cancer Center doctors have the world's largest published experience with active surveillance of kidney cancer and have identified tumor growth kinetics (how fast the tumor is growing) as one means of determining who is a candidate for active surveillance and identifying patients who might safely avoid or defer surgery.

National Leaders in Kidney Cancer Research

Fox Chase physicians are national leaders in kidney cancer research as indicated by numerous academic papers published in the world's leading journals.

Optimized Kidney Cancer Surgery

Recognized nationally and internationally for the treatment of kidney cancer, Fox Chase Cancer Center is one of the busiest centers in the country for specialized kidney cancer surgery.

About 85% of patients with localized kidney cancer treated at Fox Chase undergo a minimally-invasive surgical approach (laparoscopic surgery); a partial nephrectomy or nephron-sparing surgery (preserving the unaffected portion of the kidney); or in many cases, a combined minimally-invasive and kidney sparing approach. In most instances, the entire kidney does not need to be removed to treat the kidney cancer. This treatment option does not increase the chance of recurrence (the cancer coming back)when performed by experienced surgeons.

Tissue Ablation Treatments

In addition to partial nephrectomy, Fox Chase Cancer Center surgeons are experienced in tissue ablation treatments (e.g., cryosurgery and RadioFrequency Ablation, or RFA).

• Tissue ablation refers to local (rather than through the body's system) methods that destroy the tumor without removing it. Tissue ablation is usually appropriate for patients with only a few small tumors for whom surgery is not an option. Tissue ablation is not a cure--but does result in similar survival rates as surgery in patients with small tumors.

• RadioFrequency Ablation uses high-energy radio waves to treat the tumor. A thin, needle-like probe is temporarily placed into the tumor to release the radio waves. It is guided accurately using ultrasound or CT scans. The probe releases high frequency alternating current that creates frictional heating and destroys the cancer cells. This has become a major treatment method for patients with small tumors.

• Cryosurgery destroys a tumor by freezing it with a very cold metal probe. The probe is guided into the tumor using ultrasound. This method can treat larger tumors than either of the other ablation techniques but sometimes requires general anesthesia (where you are asleep).

These alternative nephron-sparing surgical treatments for kidney cancer may also preserve the noncancerous portion of the involved kidney. Patients treated by partial nephrectomy or other nephron-sparing surgery benefit by maintaining the normal and healthy portions of their affected kidney while having the same cancer treatment outcomes as patients who have had their entire kidney removed.

Traditional Open Surgery

While most patients treated at Fox Chase are candidates for partial nephrectomy, or nephron-sparing surgery, some patients may instead undergo a radical nephrectomy. This operation involves the removal of the whole kidney with or without the nearby adrenal gland and the fatty tissue around the kidney. This surgery is the traditional standard intervention for kidney cancer. Almost all patients who require radical nephrectomy today can undergo this operation by a minimally-invasive surgical approach. When appropriate, radical nephrectomy with removal of the entire kidney has no long-term impact on a patient's kidney function. The remaining kidney can compensate and sufficiently function independently without a risk for kidney failure or dialysis in the future.

Optimized Treatment for Advanced Kidney Cancer

Medical oncologists at Fox Chase are nationally recognized for their experience in caring for kidney cancer patients who are not completely treated by surgery alone. Our physicians have been pivotal in the development of new medications as new therapies for patients with advanced and metastatic kidney cancer. The results of these studies, initially led by Fox Chase researchers, have been recently presented to the international medical community.

Ongoing research at Fox Chase Cancer Center continues to develop and refine these approaches and drug combinations. Newer approaches include:

• Boosting the body's own immune system to combat the disease, since conventional kidney cancer chemotherapy has shown only marginal response

• "Targeted" therapies, which focus on interfering with a cancer's ability to stimulate its own growth and proliferation

Radiation for Kidney Cancer

Fox Chase Cancer Center is a national leader in the use of radiation therapy to treat patients with many different types of cancer. Our radiation treatment technology is among the most sophisticated in the world. While radiation therapy is rarely used as a primary treatment for kidney cancer, external beam radiation treatment can be used for palliative therapy and for effective relief of pain or other symptoms in patients with advanced kidney cancer that has spread to the bones or other locations.

For more information about genitourinary cancer treatment and prevention at Fox Chase Cancer Center or to make and appointment, please call 1-888-FOX CHASE (1-888-369-2427).