The kidneys are a pair of bean-shaped organs placed behind the peritoneum. The main function of the kidney is to filter the blood to eliminate excess bodily fluid, salts and by-products of metabolism like creatinine while retaining plasma proteins. Cancer that starts in the kidney is called kidney cancer. Renal cell adenocarcinoma is the most common type of kidney cancer. These can be either clear cell renal cell carcinoma or non-clear cell renal cell carcinoma. Clear cell renal cell carcinoma have clear or pale cells in culture. Chromophobe renal cell carcinoma is also pale, like the clear cells, but are much larger. Papillary renal cell carcinomas form little finger-like projections (called papillae) and they take in certain dyes and look pink when looked at under the microscope. 

 

The main cause of kidney cancer is not well understood. There are several risk factors that could make you more likely to develop renal cancer. Smoking, obesity and high blood pressure have been linked with increased renal cancer risk.

 

The stages of kidney cancer typically range from I-IV. Stage I and II renal cancers are classified by tumour size I (less than 7cm) and II (more than 7 cm) and not have spread to lymph nodes or distant body parts. Stage III kidney cancers can be of any size and have spread to lymph nodes but not distant body parts. Stage IV renal cancers have either spread into the adrenal glands on top of the kidneys or have spread to lymph nodes and distant body parts. In addition to staging, there are other factors considered while considering the outcome and treatment stage IV (metastatic) renal cell carcinoma. These include blood lactate dehydrogenase levels, blood calcium levels, red blood cell, white blood cell and neutrophil count.

 

Kidney cancer is most often detected by accident when an imaging test is done for another reason. The most common first symptom of renal cancer is blood in the urine. Other symptoms include pain in the side and back and unintended weight loss. Kidney cancer can also increase blood lactate dehydrogenase levels and blood calcium levels. It can cause anemia marked by a decrease in red blood cell count. It can also cause an increase in white blood cell and neutrophil counts.

 

Kidney cancer treatment plan can be local or systemic. Local treatment plans include surgery, ablation, radiation or active surveillance. Systemic treatment plans include chemotherapy, targeted therapy, and immune therapy. Typically treatment plans are based on the staging of cancer, age and health of the patient. Active surveillance is followed in patients with small kidney tumours. The tumour is watched closely with CT or ultrasounds and only treated if it grows. Renal cancers stage I-III are usually removed with surgery when possible. These include removing a part (partial nephrectomy) or whole kidney (radical nephrectomy). When stage III cancers cannot be completely removed by surgery or treated with radiation they might be treated with targeted therapy drugs alone or in combination with immunotherapy. Stage IV renal cancer that has spread extensively are difficult to cure through surgery or radiation therapy can be used to help reduce pain or other symptoms of metastases in some other places.

 

There are no nutritional supplements recommended specifically for kidney cancer. There is some evidence that docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a fatty acid commonly found in fish and fish oil supplements, reduces renal cell carcinoma invasiveness, growth rate, and blood vessel growth when combined with the anti-cancer therapy. It is important to not start any high dose vitamin or nutritional supplementation regimen without talking to your oncologist to avoid potential interactions with your cancer therapy.