What You Need To Know About™ - Kidney Cancer pptx

National Cancer InstituteWhat You Need Kidney Cancer U.S.. About This BookletThis National Cancer Institute NCI booklet is about cancer* that starts in the kidney.. For the latest infor

National Cancer Institute

What You Need

Kidney Cancer

U.S DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES National Institutes of Health

National Cancer Institute Services

This is only one of many free booklets forpeople with cancer

You may want more information for yourself,your family, and your doctor

NCI offers comprehensive research-basedinformation for patients and their families, healthprofessionals, cancer researchers, advocates, andthe public

• Call NCI’s Cancer Information Service at

1–800–4–CANCER (1–800–422–6237)

• Visit us at http://www.cancer.gov or

http://www.cancer.gov/espanol

• Chat using LiveHelp, NCI’s instant

messaging service, at http://www.cancer.gov/

livehelp

• E-mail us at cancergovstaff@mail.nih.gov

• Order publications at http://www.cancer.gov/

publications or by calling 1–800–4–CANCER

• Get help with quitting smoking at

1–877–44U–QUIT (1–877–448–7848)

U.S DEPARTMENT OF

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health

National Cancer Institute

About This Booklet

This National Cancer Institute (NCI) booklet is

about cancer* that starts in the kidney Other names for this disease are renal cancer and renal cell carcinoma.

About 54,000 Americans are diagnosed with renalcell carcinoma each year Most are over 55 years old

This booklet is only about renal cell

carcinoma It’s not about transitional cell cancer

(TCC) of the kidney People with TCC of thekidney have different treatment options than thosewith renal cell carcinoma For the latest

information about TCC, visit NCI’s Web site at

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/

transitionalcell or contact NCI’s Cancer

Information Service at 1–800–4–CANCER

(1–800–422–6237) About 4,000 Americans are

diagnosed with TCC of the kidney each year Also, this booklet is not about childhood

kidney cancer Treatment options are different forchildren For the latest information about

childhood kidney cancer, visit NCI’s Web site at

http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/types/

wilms or contact NCI’s Cancer Information

Service Hundreds of children are diagnosed withkidney cancer each year in the United States

Learning about medical care for kidney cancer canhelp you take an active part in making choices aboutyour care This booklet tells about:

• Diagnosis and staging

• Treatment and follow-up care

• Taking part in research studies

This booklet has lists of questions that you maywant to ask your doctor Many people find it helpful totake a list of questions to a doctor visit To helpremember what your doctor says, you can take notes.You may also want to have a family member or friend

go with you when you talk with the doctor—to takenotes, ask questions, or just listen

For the latest information about kidney cancer,

visit NCI’s Web site at http://www.cancer.gov/

cancertopics/types/kidney.

Also, NCI’s Cancer Information Service can

answer your questions about cancer We can alsosend you NCI booklets and fact sheets Call

1–800–4–CANCER (1–800–422–6237) Or chat

using LiveHelp, NCI’s instant messaging service, at

http://www.cancer.gov/livehelp.

2

The Kidneys

Your kidneys are a pair of organs in your abdomen.

Each kidney is about the size of a fist

Your kidneys are part of the urinary tract They make urine by removing wastes and extra water from

your blood

Urine collects in a hollow space (renal pelvis) in the

middle of each kidney Urine passes from your renalpelvis into your bladder through a long tube called a

ureter Urine leaves your bladder through a shorter tube

Your kidneys also make substances to help control

blood pressure and to make red blood cells.

Attached to the top of each kidney is an adrenal

gland A layer of fatty tissue and an outer layer of fibrous tissue surround the kidney and adrenal gland.

Kidney

Urethra

UreterRenal veinRenal artery

This picture shows the kidney and adrenal gland.

Cancer Cells

Cancer begins in cells, the building blocks that make

up tissues Tissues make up the kidneys and the otherorgans of the body

Normal cells grow and divide to form new cells asthe body needs them When normal cells grow old orget damaged, they die, and new cells take their place.Sometimes, this process goes wrong New cells formwhen the body doesn’t need them, and old or damagedcells don’t die as they should The buildup of extra cells

often forms a mass of tissue called a growth or tumor.

Tumors in the kidney can be benign (not cancer) or

malignant (cancer) Benign tumors are not as harmful

as malignant tumors:

• Benign tumors (such as cysts):

—are usually not a threat to life

—can be treated or removed and usually don’t growback

—don’t invade the tissues around them

—don’t spread to other parts of the body

• Malignant growths:

—may be a threat to life

—usually can be removed but can grow back

—can invade and damage nearby tissues and organs

—can spread to other parts of the body

Kidney cancer cells can spread by breaking away

from the kidney tumor They can travel through lymph

vessels to nearby lymph nodes They can also spread

through blood vessels to the lungs, bones, or liver.

After spreading, kidney cancer cells may attach toother tissues and grow to form new tumors that maydamage those tissues See the Staging section on page

11 for information about kidney cancer that has spread.Risk Factors

When you get a diagnosis of kidney cancer, it’snatural to wonder what may have caused the disease.Doctors usually can’t explain why one person getskidney cancer and another doesn’t

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However, we do know that people with certain risk

factors may be more likely than others to develop

kidney cancer A risk factor is something that mayincrease the chance of getting a disease

Studies have found the following risk factors forkidney cancer:

• Smoking: Smoking tobacco is an important risk

factor for kidney cancer People who smoke have ahigher risk than nonsmokers The risk is higher forthose who smoke more cigarettes or for a long time

• Obesity: Being obese increases the risk of kidney

cancer

• High blood pressure: Having high blood pressure

may increase the risk of kidney cancer

• Family history of kidney cancer: People with a

family member who had kidney cancer have aslightly increased risk of the disease Also, certainconditions that run in families can increase the risk

of kidney cancer

—Von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) syndrome: VHL is a

rare disease that runs in some families It’s caused

by changes in the VHL gene People with a

changed VHL gene have an increased risk ofkidney cancer They may also have cysts ortumors in the eyes, brain, or other parts of thebody Family members of those with VHL canhave a test to check for a changed VHL gene.Many people who get kidney cancer have none ofthese risk factors, and many people who have knownrisk factors don’t develop the disease

How to Quit Tobacco

Quitting is important for anyone who usestobacco Quitting at any time is beneficial to yourhealth

For people who already have kidney cancer,quitting may reduce the chance of getting anothertype of cancer (such as lung, esophagus, or oralcancer), lung disease, or heart disease Quittingmay also help cancer treatments work better.There are many ways to get help:

• Ask your doctor about medicine or nicotinereplacement therapy Your doctor can suggest anumber of treatments that help people quit

• Ask your doctor or dentist to help you findlocal programs or trained professionals whohelp people stop using tobacco

• Call NCI’s Smoking Quitline at

1–877–44U–QUIT (1–877–448–7848) or

instant message us through LiveHelp

(http://www.cancer.gov/livehelp) We can tell

you about:

—Ways to quit smoking

—Groups that help smokers who want to quit

—NCI publications about quitting smoking

—How to take part in a study of methods tohelp smokers quit

• Go online to Smokefree.gov (http://www.

smokefree.gov), a Federal Government Web

site It offers a guide to quitting smoking and alist of other resources

Common symptoms of kidney cancer include:

• Blood in your urine (which may make urine lookrusty or darker red)

• Pain in your side that doesn’t go away

• A lump or mass in your side or abdomen

• Weight loss for no known reason

• Fever

• Feeling very tired

These symptoms may be caused by kidney cancer or

by other health problems, such as an infection or a

kidney cyst People with these symptoms should telltheir doctor so that any problem can be diagnosed andtreated as early as possible

Diagnosis

If you have symptoms that suggest kidney cancer,your doctor will try to find out what’s causing theproblems

You may have a physical exam Also, you may haveone or more of the following tests:

• Urine tests: The lab checks your urine for blood

and other signs of disease

• Blood tests: The lab checks your blood for several

substances, such as creatinine A high level of

creatinine may mean the kidneys aren’t doing theirjob

• Ultrasound: An ultrasound device uses sound waves

that can’t be heard by humans The sound wavesmake a pattern of echoes as they bounce off organsinside your abdomen The echoes create a picture ofyour kidney and nearby tissues The picture canshow a kidney tumor

• CT scan: An x-ray machine linked to a computer

takes a series of detailed pictures of your abdomen

You may receive an injection of contrast material so

your urinary tract and lymph nodes show up clearly

in the pictures The CT scan can show cancer in thekidneys, lymph nodes, or elsewhere in the abdomen

• MRI: A large machine with a strong magnet linked

to a computer is used to make detailed pictures ofyour urinary tract and lymph nodes You mayreceive an injection of contrast material MRI canshow cancer in your kidneys, lymph nodes, or othertissues in the abdomen

• IVP: You’ll receive an injection of dye into a vein in

your arm The dye travels through the body andcollects in your kidneys The dye makes them show

up on x-rays A series of x-rays then tracks the dye

as it moves through your kidneys to your ureters andbladder The x-rays can show a kidney tumor orother problems (IVP is not used as commonly as

CT or MRI for the detection of kidney cancer.)

• Biopsy: The removal of tissue to look for cancer

cells is a biopsy In some cases, your doctor will do

a biopsy to diagnose kidney cancer Your doctorinserts a thin needle through your skin into thekidney to remove a small sample of tissue Yourdoctor may use ultrasound or a CT scan to guide the

needle A pathologist uses a microscope to check for

cancer cells in the tissue

• Surgery: After surgery to remove part or all of a

kidney tumor, a pathologist can make the finaldiagnosis by checking the tissue under a microscopefor cancer cells

Staging

If kidney cancer is diagnosed, your doctor needs tolearn the extent (stage) of the disease to help youchoose the best treatment The stage is based on thesize of the kidney tumor and whether the cancer hasinvaded nearby tissues or spread to other parts of thebody

Your doctor may order one or more tests:

• Blood tests: Your doctor can check for substances in

your blood Some people with kidney cancer have

high levels of calcium or LDH A blood test can also

show how well your liver is working

• Chest x-ray: An x-ray of the chest can show a

tumor in your lung

• CT scan: CT scans of your chest and abdomen can

show cancer in your lymph nodes, lungs, or

elsewhere

• MRI: MRI can show cancer in your blood vessels,

lymph nodes, or other tissues in the abdomen.When cancer spreads from its original place toanother part of the body, the new tumor has the samekind of abnormal cells and the same name as theprimary (original) tumor For example, if kidney cancerspreads to a lung, the cancer cells in the lung are

actually kidney cancer cells The disease is metastatic

kidney cancer, not lung cancer It’s treated as kidneycancer, not as lung cancer Doctors sometimes call thenew tumor “distant” disease

These are the stages of kidney cancer:

• Stage I: The tumor is no bigger than a tennis ball

(almost 3 inches or about 7 centimeters) Cancercells are found only in the kidney

• Stage II: The tumor is bigger than a tennis ball But

cancer cells are found only in the kidney

• Stage III: The tumor can be any size It has spread

to at least one nearby lymph node Or it has grownthrough the kidney to reach nearby blood vessels

• Stage IV: The tumor has grown through the layer of

fatty tissue and the outer layer of fibrous tissue thatsurrounds the kidney Or cancer cells have spread tonearby lymph nodes or to the lungs, liver, bones, orother tissues

Treatment

Common treatment options for people with kidney

cancer are surgery, targeted therapy, and biological

therapy You may receive more than one type of

treatment

The treatment that’s right for you depends mainly onthe following:

• The size of the tumor

• Whether the tumor has invaded tissues outside thekidney

• Whether the tumor has spread to other parts of thebody

• Your age and general health

You may have a team of specialists to help planyour treatment Your doctor may refer you to a

specialist, or you may ask for a referral

You may want to see a urologist, a surgeon who

specializes in treating problems of the urinary tract.Other specialists who treat kidney cancer include

urologic oncologists (surgeons who specialize in

cancers of the urinary tract), medical oncologists, and

radiation oncologists Your health care team may also

include an oncology nurse and a registered dietitian.

Your health care team can describe your treatmentchoices, the expected results of each, and the possible

side effects Because cancer therapy often damages

healthy cells and tissues, side effects are common.Before treatment starts, ask your health care teamabout possible side effects and how treatment maychange your normal activities You and your healthcare team can work together to develop a treatmentplan that meets your needs

At any stage of disease, supportive care is available

to control pain and other symptoms, to relieve the sideeffects of treatment, and to ease emotional concerns.Information about such care is available on NCI’s Web

site at http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/coping.

For example, some people with kidney cancer may

need to have radiation therapy to relieve pain or

certain other problems Radiation therapy uses energy rays to kill cancer cells

high-Also, NCI’s Cancer Information Service can answeryour questions about supportive care Call

1–800–4–CANCER (1–800–422–6237) Or chat

using LiveHelp, NCI’s instant messaging service, at

http://www.cancer.gov/livehelp.

You may want to talk with your doctor about taking

part in a clinical trial Clinical trials are research

studies testing new treatments They are an importantoption for people with all stages of kidney cancer Seethe Taking Part in Cancer Research section on page 23

You may want to ask your doctor these

questions before you begin treatment:

• How large is the tumor? What is the stage ofthe disease? Has the tumor grown outside thekidney or spread to other organs?

• What are my treatment choices? Which do yousuggest for me? Why?

• What are the expected benefits of each kind oftreatment?

• What can I do to prepare for treatment?

• Will I need to stay in the hospital? If so, forhow long?

• What are the risks and possible side effects ofeach treatment? How can side effects bemanaged?

• What is the treatment likely to cost? Will myinsurance cover it?

• How will treatment affect my normal

activities?

• Would a research study (clinical trial) be agood choice for me?

• Can you recommend a doctor who could give

me a second opinion about my treatmentoptions?

• How often should I have checkups?

Surgery is the most common treatment for peoplewith kidney cancer The type of surgery depends on thesize and stage of the cancer, whether you have twokidneys, and whether cancer was found in both

kidneys

You and your surgeon can talk about the types ofsurgery and which may be right for you:

• Removing all of the kidney (radical nephrectomy):

The surgeon removes the entire kidney along withthe adrenal gland and some tissue around the kidney.Some lymph nodes in the area may also be

removed

• Removing part of the kidney (partial

nephrectomy): The surgeon removes only the part of

the kidney that contains the tumor People with akidney tumor that is smaller than a tennis ball maychoose this type of surgery

There are two approaches for removing the kidney.The surgeon may remove the tumor by making a largeincision into your body (open surgery) Or the surgeonmay remove the tumor by making small incisions

(laparoscopic surgery) The surgeon sees inside your abdomen with a thin, lighted tube (a laparoscope)

placed inside a small incision Sometimes a robot isused The surgeon uses handles below a computerdisplay to control the robot’s arms

The surgeon may use other methods of destroyingthe cancer in the kidney For people who have a tumorsmaller than 4 centimeters and who can’t have surgery

to remove part of the kidney because of other healthproblems, the surgeon may suggest:

• Cryosurgery: The surgeon inserts a tool through a

small incision or directly through the skin into thetumor The tool freezes and kills the kidney tumor

• Radiofrequency ablation: The surgeon inserts a

special probe directly through the skin or through asmall incision into the tumor The probe containstiny electrodes that kill the kidney cancer cells withheat

It takes time to heal after surgery, and the timeneeded to recover is different for each person It’scommon to feel weak or tired for a while

Also, you may have pain or discomfort for the firstfew days Medicine can help control your pain Beforesurgery, you should discuss the plan for pain relief withyour doctor or nurse After surgery, your doctor canadjust the plan if you need more pain control

Your health care team will watch you for signs ofbleeding, infection, or other problems They will keeptrack of how much fluid you take in and how muchurine passes out of your body

If one kidney is removed, the remaining kidney isusually able to do the work of both kidneys However,

if your remaining kidney isn’t doing a good job

cleaning your blood, you may need dialysis Some people may need a transplant with a healthy kidney

from a donor