Kidney Cancer: An Overview of Renal Cell Carcinoma?

Answer 1

Kidney cancer is defined as that type of cancer that has developed in the kidney, and, of the many different types that are found - types that affect both adults and children alike - renal cell carcinoma is, by far, the most common.

Renal cell carcinoma is a particular virulent form of cancer of the kidney, and, while it can be hereditary, it can also appear in patients whose family has no history of the ailment. As this particular strain of cancer displays few symptoms until it has progressed to a fairly advanced stage, and as it is extremely resistant to treatment, patients who develop renal cell carcinoma generally do not have a good prognosis. The condition is found in more men than in women and is far more prevalent among those of Northern European descent than any other population group.

Symptoms of renal cell carcinoma include abdominal pain, weight loss, night sweats and fever. A mass in the abdomen can sometimes also be observed, and another major symptom of this ailment is the presence of blood in the urine, which is known as hematuria. Paraneoplastic syndrome, especially affecting the liver, is another common symptom and is caused by the body’s own immune response to the presence of the cancerous cells. Renal cell carcinoma is also known for quickly metastasizing to other organs, especially the lungs, soft tissues, bone and liver.

Kidney cancer of this type progresses through four separate stages, and studies have shown that, of those patients who are diagnosed with 4th stage renal cell carcinoma, only about 11% will survive for five years after the diagnosis. Although there’s no certainty about what causes this disease, several factors seem to increase the possibility of a patient’s developing the condition, and these include obesity, whether the patient is a smoker and hypertension. How this type of kidney cancer is treated depends on what stage the disease has progressed to, and common treatments include chemotherapy and surgically removing all or part of the affected kidney.

The earlier the disease is discovered, the better, and patients are therefore encouraged to visit their doctors as soon as any abdominal discomfort is detected.