What Is Kidney Cancer

Types of Kidney Cancer

Kidney cancer is not one disease but consists of several types of cancers. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) originates in the tubules of the kidney and comprises 90% of what people refer to as kidney cancer. Transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) occurs outside the kidney in the area that drains the urine leading to the bladder (the ureter). Its pathology more resembles bladder cancer than RCC. Renal sarcoma originates in the connective tissue of the kidney and is much rarer than RCC. Wilms' tumor is a childhood form of kidney cancer.

Finally, oncocytomas are benign tumors originating in the kidney. They can turn cancerous and are currently treated as if they are malignant tumors, that is, they are removed surgically or ablated (see below). There is no attempt to distinguish oncocytomas from malignant tumors when they are found in the kidney.

Renal cell cancers are usually distinguished by their pathology, or the appearance of the kidney cancer cells under the microscope.

Clear cell kidney cancer occurs in about 80% of the cases. It's called clear cell because the cells appear mostly clear under the microscope. Papillary renal cell cancer occurs in about 15% of the cases. Chromophobe occurs in about 5%, and collecting duct occurs in fewer than 1% of the cases.

Papillary and chromophobe are slow-growing cancers, and if caught early, may be cured by surgical removal of the cancer. But neither papillary nor chromophobe has any non-experimental medical treatment beyond surgery. Clear cell is faster growing, but it benefits from the fact that most of the medical treatments focus on this variety. Collecting duct is very aggressive and has no known treatment beyond surgery.

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