A wide variety of diseases are rampant and often caused by the long term neglect of our health. However, individuals indirectly exposed to smoke, toxic chemicals, or pollution at work may lead to bigger health problems, such as cancer. Renal cancer, or kidney cancer, can occur with neglect or toxic exposure. It results when the renal cells become malignant and grow out of control, forming a mass, or tumor, which can spread (or metastasize) to nearby tissues and organs.
In the case of kidney cancer, the symptoms are quite apparent:
- Sudden and unexplained weight loss
- Pain in your side body
- Unexplained fatigue
- Lumps in the area of the kidney
- Unexplained spike in blood pressure
To diagnose renal cancer, doctors will use a variety of tests to obtain more clarity about whether the problem is kidney cancer, or another underlying health issue:
- Blood or urine tests
Check for any signs of improper working kidneys. Further, the blood supply is provided to the tumor can also be understood with the help of renal arteriogram. It is particularly helpful in detecting small tumors.
- IVP
Intravenous pyelogram is a test that produces an x-ray of the kidneys after a dye is injected to help highlighting any tumors.
- CT scan
This modern day replacement of IVP, takes high powered images of the kidneys, which can be further studied for the presence of kidney cancer.
- MRI
This test makes use of powerful magnets and radio waves to provide pictures of soft tissue in the body. In order to obtain better pictures, some contrast agent would need to be injected.
Treatment for kidney cancer often includes the following. Many doctors will prescribe a combination of treatments to eradicate kidney cancer for good:
- Surgery
There are 3 major types of surgeries to treat renal cancer. The most common among them is radical nephrectomy, which involves the removal of the adrenal glands, kidney, the surrounding tissues, and lymph nodes. It can be performed by making a small incision with a laparoscope.
- Nephrectomy
A simple nephrectomy, on the other hand, removes only the kidney.
- Partial nephrectomy
A partial nephrectomy removes only the part of the kidney affected with cancer and a part of the tissue around that area. This is used in patient with small tumors or cases where radical nephrectomy could hurt the adjacent kidney.
- Cryotherapy
In cases where surgery is found incapable for cancer treatment, extreme cold may be used in cryotherapy to kill the tumor.
- Radiofrequency ablation
High energy radio waves are used in radiofrequency ablation to kill off cancer cells.
- Arterial embolization
This treatment for renal cancer works by blocking the blood flow to the tumor and can be used to shrink a tumor.
