Surgery For Renal Cancer
Kidney cancer, also known as renal cancer, is a disease in which cancerous cells occur in the lining of the tubes in the kidney(Surgery For Renal Cancer). The kidney’s primary function is to filter and clean the waste carried in the blood using the tubules, which are tiny tubes in the kidney, additionally, the waste collected from the blood makes urine, which is stored in the bladder until it passes from the body. When cancerous cells get accumulated in the ureters and renal pelvis, it leads to renal cancer. This is different from renal cancer and has a different process of treatment.
Causes of renal cancer
Kidney cancer develops when the DNA of some kidney cells changes (mutates). While, the DNA of a cell includes the instructions that tell it what to do, the modifications tell the cells to multiply and expand quickly. The aberrant cells clump together to produce a tumour that can spread beyond the kidney, moreover some cells can break off and spread to other places of the body (metastasise).
Factors responsible for renal cancer:
- Old age. Kidney cancer is more likely as you get older.
- Smoking. Smokers are more likely than nonsmokers to develop kidney cancer. After you leave, the risk reduces.
- Obesity. Obese people are more likely to develop kidney cancer than healthy people. Blood pressure that is too high (hypertension). Kidney cancer is more likely if you have high blood pressure.
- Kidney cancer runs in the family. If someone in your immediate family has had kidney cancer, you’re at a higher risk.
- Kidney failure treatment. Long-term dialysis can increase risk of kidney cancer in people with chronic renal failure.
Nephron-sparing surgery
Nephron-sparing surgery was first designed to minimise the risk of cancer spreading and simultaneously preserve kidney function. The research recorded that cancer did not spread further to other body parts, and the survivors did not require further treatment or transplant.
Depending on the severity, size and location of the renal tumors, Doctor suggest Nephron-Sparing Surgery (NSS). The surgery works with removing the renal tumors from the kidney or the part of the kidney that is local for the abnormal cells causing cancer. There are various reasons for which this method of treatment is better than general cancer treatment like chemotherapy or radiation.
Benefits of surgery:
Apart from the commonly understood benefits, for example, saving time on the duration of treatment, which ends with the surgery and recovery period, the treatment is economically friendly in the sense that the patient doesn’t have to financially spend on long-term treatments and consultations that might extend for years, this method of treatment is also less invasive and less destructive for the patient’s body.
The treatment involves the patient’s tumour being studied and, based on the above mentioned factors, the tumour is surgically removed, additionally, this treatment doesn’t just affect the removal of the said tumour but also involves the removal of a part of the kidney along with the cluster of abnormal cells in order to effectively avoid metastasis, which is the spreading of cancer to other parts of the body.
Reason for surgery?
The removal of the kidney depends on various factors. It includes the health of the kidneys and whether or not the patient can survive sufficiently with the remaining kidney, in addition to other factors like which part of the kidney is being operated out.
The doctor observes for signs of renal failure after the surgery, additionally, studies show that 90% per cent of the patients who undergo Nephron-Sparing Surgery make a full recovery.
References
John Hopkins Medicine. (n.d.). Surgery for kidney cancer. Johns Hopkins Medicine, based in Baltimore, Maryland. https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/treatment-tests-and-therapies/surgery-for-kidney-cancer
Ke-Hung Tsui, Arndt van Ophoven, Oleg Shvarts, & Arie Belldegrun. (1999, July). Nephron-Sparing Surgery for Renal Cell Carcinoma. National Center for Biotechnology Information. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/
Kidney cancer surgery. (n.d.). American Cancer Society | Information and Resources about for Cancer: Breast, Colon, Lung, Prostate, Skin. https://www.cancer.org/cancer/kidney-cancer/treating/surgery.html
R G Uzzo, & A C Novick. (2001, July). Nephron sparing surgery for renal tumors: indications, techniques and outcomes. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11435813/. https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/nephron-sparing-surgery
Solomon L Woldu, Aaron C Weinberg, Ruslan Korets, Rashed Ghandour 2, Matthew R Danzig 2, Arindam RoyChoudhury 3, Sean D Kallo Mitchell C Benson 2, G Joel DeCastro 2, James M McKiernan, Matthew R Danzig, Arindam Roy Choudhury, Sean D Kallo Mitchell C Benson, G Joel DeCastro, & James M McKiernan. (2014, May). Who really benefits from nephron-sparing surgery? PubMed.
