There is no mass screening strategy for kidney cancer.Only individuals who are hereditarily predisposed to this type of cancer are systemically monitored.
The kidney is a vital organ, responsible for filtering the blood and producing urine in order to eliminate waste from the circulatory system. Kidney cancer occurs when a cell, most frequently located in the renal parenchyma, begins reproducing in an uncontrolled manner, forming a tumor.
Kidney cancer occurs when a cell, most frequently located in the renal parenchyma, begins reproducing in an uncontrolled manner, forming a tumor. Although kidney cancer is relatively rare, its occurrence is rising, particularly in industrialized countries.
Olivier confides in you his fight against kidney cancer, which he managed to overcome with the precious help of his entourage.
In rare cases, kidney cancer can be caused by hereditary genetic conditions and be accompanied by extra-renal pathologies (e.g., Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome). Patients under the age of 45 who are diagnosed with bilateral and/or multifocal tumors should have his/her first-degree relativesundergo genetic tests.
Fatigue
weight loss
loss of appetite
haematuria
Lower back pain
Fever
There is no mass screening strategy for kidney cancer.Only individuals who are hereditarily predisposed to this type of cancer are systemically monitored.
As 20% of renal tumors are metastatic (i.e. will have spread to locations which are remote from the kidney), assessment will be extended to include a full body scan and/or a MRI brain scan and a bone scan.
The therapeutic strategy depends on the condition’s stage.
*total (in the majority of cases): the affected kidney is removed along with the surrounding fat and the homolateral suprarenal gland
*partial: if the tumor is located at the kidney’s perimeter and is limited in size, or in the context of a hereditary pathology involving a risk of multiple tumors
*radiofrequency ablation: a probe is positioned percutaneously in contact with the tumor and tumoral cells are killed by heat (at a temperature between 50 and 100°C).
*cryoablation: also administered percutaneously, in this case the probe freezes the lesion (-47°C).
2. When kidney cancer is or becomes metastatic, the oncologist may suggest a variety of therapies. Kidney cancer is not susceptible to chemotherapy – consequently, this treatment will not be offered. Treatment is based upon targeted oral therapies or immunotherapy administered by perfusion, or a combination of the two. Finally, if metastatic lesions are limited in number, a focal treatment may be proposed (radiotherapy, surgery or interventional radiology).
The development of state-of-the-art immunotherapy has transformed kidney cancer care over the last 20 years.
The latest immunotherapies, which “train” the patient’s immune system to target and destroy tumoral cells (see attached report), have achieved high response rates, including a full response in up where immunotherapies are combined.
Clinical trials are in progress to determine which types of patients will benefit most from one or more of the above therapies.
