Treating kidney cancer is one of the broadest areas of treatment in Turkey, as kidney cancer is the fourteenth largest cancer in the world, and the symptoms of it do not appear until a late stage, so it must be detected early.
Kidney cancer is among the 10 most common types of cancer among men and women. It may be asymptomatic at an early stage, so it is difficult to detect in its early stages. It is a cancer that often arises in a kidney on one side and is rarely bilateral.
The stages of kidney cancer vary depending on the location and spread of the tumor in the kidney and outside it. Is it possible to treat kidney cancer at all its stages? Does kidney cancer return after its removal? Is kidney cancer dangerous? How long does a kidney cancer patient live? Follow us in this article.
Kidney cancer treatment and what you should know about this cancer
It is an abnormal growth of cells in kidney tissue. Over time, these cells form a mass called a tumor.
Cancer begins when something causes a change in the DNA of cells, and they divide out of control.
A cancerous tumor can spread to other vital tissues and organs.
To understand more about the treatment of this cancer, we must learn about the kidney and its functions. This knowledge will allow us to determine the correct treatment method appropriate to the type and stage of this cancer.
What is a kidney, and what are its functions?
The kidney is a bean-shaped organ in the body located below the rib cage near the middle of the back.
Most people have two kidneys, each about the size of a fist, one on each side of the spine.
The kidneys remove waste and control blood pressure, among other functions. They also produce the hormones necessary for blood formation and manufacture vitamin D.
Blood passes through the kidneys to be cleaned before returning to the heart. Blood enters the kidneys through two vessels called renal arteries.
The kidneys also produce urine, which consists of excess water and wastes filtered from the blood. Urine travels to the bladder (a balloon-shaped storage sac) through two tubes called ureters.
The bladder empties urine from the body (through urination) through another tube called the urethra.
The kidneys also produce several important hormones, including:
- Erythropoietin: This hormone stimulates the bone marrow (the soft, spongy tissue inside the body’s large bones where blood cells are formed) to produce red blood cells. Red blood cells carry oxygen to the body’s cells
- Renin: This hormone regulates blood pressure
- Calcitriol: This hormone tells the intestines to absorb calcium from our foods. Calcium is a mineral that helps maintain healthy bones and teeth
Types of kidney cancer
Renal cell carcinoma is the most common form of kidney cancer. However, there are different types of kidney cancer, including:
Renal cell carcinoma (RCC)
This type is the most common form of kidney cancer in adults and represents 85% of all cancers of the kidney. Renal cell cancer usually develops as a single tumor in one kidney, but it can affect both kidneys.
Renal cell carcinoma develops from the lining of the small tubules that form part of the kidney’s nephron.
Transitional cell carcinoma
Transitional cell carcinoma represents 6% to 7% of all kidney cancers, and this cancer usually begins in the area where the ureter connects to the main part of the kidney.
This area is called the renal pelvis. Transitional cell carcinoma can also occur in the ureter or bladder.
Renal sarcoma
This is the least common form of kidney cancer, accounting for only 1% of cancer of kidney cases. It begins in the connective tissues of the kidney, and if sarcomatoid cancer of kidney is not treated, it can spread to nearby organs and bones.
Wilms’ tumor
The most common type of kidney cancer in children. It represents about 5% of cancers of the kidney.
Does kidney cancer spread?
Cancer of the kidney represents about 3.7 percent of all cancers.
The risk of kidney cancer increases with age, and it is more common in men than in women.
In stages II and III, renal cancer spreads to the vena cava and nearby organs first, then to distant organs.
Stages of kidney cancer
Causes of kidney cancer
The exact cause of cancer of kidney is not known, but several risk factors have been identified. A risk factor is a characteristic or behavior that increases your chance of developing a disease.
Risk factors for kidney cancer include:
- Smoking: Smokers are more likely to develop cancer of kidney
- Obesity: Obesity is a risk factor for kidney cancer.
- High blood pressure: High blood pressure, especially in women, has been associated with an increased risk of kidney cancer
- Family history: People who have family members with cancer of kidney may be at higher risk of developing the cancer
- Radiation: Women treated with radiation for cancer of the reproductive organs (uterus and cervix) are more likely to develop cancer of kidney
- Genetic changes (mutations): Changes in certain genes can increase the risk of kidney cancer
- Long-term dialysis treatment: Dialysis is the process of cleaning blood by passing it through a special machine. Dialysis is used when a person’s kidneys are not working properly
- Tuberous sclerosis: Tuberous sclerosis is a disease that causes epileptic seizures and mental retardation, as well as the formation of tumors in many different organs
- Von Hippel-Lindau syndrome (VHL): People with this genetic disorder are more likely to develop kidney cancer. This disorder causes non-cancerous tumors in the blood vessels, usually in the eyes and brain
Kidney cancer symptoms
Kidney cancer may not cause any symptoms in its early stages.
However, kidney cancer symptoms may begin to appear as the tumor grows. For this reason, cancer of kidney is often not diagnosed until it begins to spread.
Symptoms of cancer of kidney can include:
- Blood in the urine (a condition called hematuria)
- A mass in the kidney area
- Pain in the flank
- Tired
- A general feeling of discomfort
- Loss of appetite and/or weight
- Fever
- The patient may complain of bone pain
- Hypertension
- Anemia
If you have any of the previous symptoms, contact us at the Bimaristan Family Center in Turkey
How is kidney cancer diagnosed?
If you have symptoms, your doctor will perform a complete medical examination and physical examination. Your doctor may also order some tests that can help diagnose and evaluate cancer. These tests can include:
- Urinalysis: A urine sample is studied to see if it contains blood. Even very small traces of blood, invisible to the naked eye, can be detected in urine tests.
- Blood tests: These tests count the number of each type of blood cell and check the different electrolytes in your body.
- A blood test can show if there are too few red blood cells (anemia) or if your kidney function is disturbed (by looking at creatinine).
- Computed tomography (CT or CAT) is a special X-ray scan that uses a computer to create a series of pictures or slices of the inside of the body.
- This test is often performed using intravenous contrast material (contrast material). Patients with poor kidney function may not be able to take this substance.
- Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): This is a test that produces images of the inside of the body using a large magnet, radio waves, and a computer and is safe for pregnant women.
- Ultrasound: This test uses high-frequency sound waves that travel through the body’s tissues to create images that are displayed on a screen.
- This test is useful in detecting tumors that have a density different from healthy tissue.
- Biopsy: During this procedure, a thin needle is inserted into the tumor, and a small sample of tissue is removed (biopsy). The doctor will examine the tissue under a microscope to see if there are any cancer cells. Since cancer of kidney biopsies are not always completely reliable, they may not be. Your doctor recommends this test.
Most cancers are classified by stage, which describes the cancer that helps in planning treatment. The stage of cancer depends on:
- Location and size of the tumor
- The extent of lymph node involvement
- The degree of spread of the cancer
The doctor uses information from various tests, including CT, MRI, and biopsy, to determine the stage of the cancer.
Kidney cancer treatment in Turkey
Kidney cancer treatment in Turkey depends on the type of cancer, its stage and grade, the patient’s age, and general health.
Surgery is the most common treatment for cancer of kidney. Several surgical options may be considered, including:
- Partial nephrectomy: The surgeon removes only the part of the kidney that contains the tumor
- Radical nephrectomy: The surgeon removes the entire kidney and some of the tissue around the kidney. Some lymph nodes in the area may also be removed
In Turkey, it has become possible today to use robotic surgery to treat kidney cancer, and it has also become possible to treat tumors with cooling technology and cryoablation.
When one kidney is removed, the remaining kidney is usually able to perform the work of both kidneys. If the tumor affects both kidneys, the patient will need to undergo a kidney transplant. Hospitals in Turkey are considered among the most important and best hospitals in the world for organ transplantation, and today, this is done with the help of robots.
Surgery is the treatment of choice for most stages of kidney cancer. For chemotherapy for kidney cancer, there are several relatively new agents that block blood flow to the tumor and put it in a dormant state. These medications are usually taken orally. Another approach is to use medications that activate the kidney’s kidneys. The body’s immunity to fight the tumor.
What is the outlook for people with kidney cancer?
The chance of recovery depends on the type and stage of the cancer (whether it is only in the kidneys or has spread to other places in the body), and the chance of recovery also depends on the patient’s general health condition.
Like most types of cancer, kidney cancer is most treatable if it is discovered in its early stages. In general, if the cancer is discovered early, before it has spread beyond the outer covering of the kidney, it is often curable.
In the end, we find that kidney cancer must be detected early, as its symptoms do not appear until a late stage, and doctors often resort to surgery to treat this cancer, which is considered a curative treatment in most cases at the hands of the most skilled doctors in Turkey.
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