Treatment Overview
Treatment for kidney cancer is based on the stage of the cancer and other things, such as your overall health. The main treatment is surgery to remove the cancer. Other options may include using heat or cold to destroy cancer cells (thermal ablation). If the cancer has spread beyond the kidneys (metastatic cancer), treatment may also include targeted therapy or immunotherapy.
Active surveillance may be an option for some people with very small tumors. Some very small tumors may never grow, and others may grow slowly. You'll have regular checkups and tests but won't have treatment unless the cancer gets worse.
Your doctor will talk with you about your options and then make a treatment plan.
Surgery
Most people with kidney cancer have surgery. If you have early-stage cancer, the doctor may be able to remove all of it. No further treatment may be needed.
The main types of surgery are:
- Partial nephrectomy.
- The doctor removes only the part of the kidney that has a tumor. The rest of the kidney can still work normally. This may be called nephron-sparing or kidney-sparing surgery.
- Radical nephrectomy.
- The doctor removes the whole kidney and the layer of fat around the kidney. The doctor may also remove the adrenal gland and nearby lymph nodes.
Surgery may be done through one cut (incision). This is called open surgery. Or it may be done through several very small cuts. This is called laparoscopic or minimally invasive surgery.
Surgery may not be a good choice for some older adults or people who have serious health problems.
Thermal ablation
This treatment uses heat or cold to destroy (ablate) tumors. Using heat is called radiofrequency ablation. Using cold is called cryoablation.
Thermal ablation may be done when tumors are very small or surgery is not a good choice.
Treatment of metastatic cancer
Surgery is sometimes done to remove cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. Treatment may also include:
- Radiation.
- This uses high-dose X-rays to destroy cancer cells and shrink tumors.
- Immunotherapy.
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This treatment helps your immune system fight cancer. It may be given in several ways.
- Targeted therapy.
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These medicines attack only cancer cells, not normal cells. They help keep cancer from growing or spreading.
Learn more
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Immunotherapy for Cancer
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Nephrectomy
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Radiation Treatment for Cancer