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Known as renal carcinoma and also called clear cell carcinoma, it is a malignant tumor that affects the epithelial cells of the kidney.
Most renal carcinomas appear in people over 40 years of age, with a peak incidence around the sixth or seventh decade.
They tend to arise in people with vascular disorders of the kidneys , because they are very close to the bloodstream, they often send secondary tumors to other organs of the body such as the lungs, liver, brain and bone tissue.
Renal carcinoma forms a large round mass in one or both kidneys. It is mainly yellow in color due to the large amount of lipid substances present.
There are also reddened areas, where blood vessels have bled, and cysts that contain watery fluids.
The tumor body usually shows numerous large blood vessels, the walls of which are made up of tumor cells.
Kidney carcinomas are often not recognized until they develop in other parts of the body. Painless bleeding in the urine can occur early in the disease.
Pain is rare and occurs late in the development of the disease.
The tumor causes deformity in one or more of the cavities in the kidney at an early stage; If tumors are suspected, a specialized X-ray will show these distortions.
The kidneys
The kidneys are organs in your body that help get rid of waste from the body while regulating fluid balance. There are small tubes in the kidneys called tubules. These help filter the blood, help excrete waste, and help make urine.
A hypernephroma occurs when cancer cells begin to grow uncontrollably in the lining of the kidney tubules.
This is a fast-growing cancer that often spreads to the lungs and surrounding organs.
Causes of hypernephroma
Experts don’t know the exact cause of hypernephroma.
It is most commonly found in men between the ages of 50 and 70, but has been diagnosed in patients of any age.
There are some risk factors for the disease, including:
- Family history of hypernephroma.
- Patients with dialysis treatment.
- Hypertension .
- Obesity .
- Smoking
- Polycystic kidney disease (an inherited disorder that causes cysts to form in the kidneys).
- Von Hippel-Lindau genetic disease (characterized by cysts and tumors in various organs).
- Chronic abuse of certain medications such as: non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs used to treat arthritis and medications to relieve fever and pain, such as acetaminophen, aspirin, ibuprofen, for a long time.
- Hepatitis C.
- Exposure to certain dyes, asbestos, cadmium, herbicides, and solvents.
Symptoms
When a hypernephroma is in its early stages, patients may be symptom free.
As the disease progresses, symptoms also progress and may include:
- Bulging of the abdomen
- Presence of blood in the urine.
- Unexplained weight loss
- Loss of appetite
- Fatigue.
- Eye sight problems.
- Persistent pain in the side of the chest.
- Excessive hair growth in women.
Diagnosis of hypernephroma
If the presence of a hypernephroma is suspected, the diagnosis begins with a personal and family history and a physical examination.
A series of tests may be ordered to obtain an accurate diagnosis. These may include:
- A complete blood count.
- CT scan: allows a close look at the kidneys to detect any abnormal growth.
- Abdominal and kidney ultrasounds: allows you to create an image of the organs, in the case of tumors and other abnormalities.
- Urine test – to detect blood in the urine and to test cells for evidence of cancer.
- Biopsy: removal of a tissue sample, to rule out or confirm the presence of cancer.
If a hypernephroma is diagnosed, more tests will be done to find out if and where the cancer has spread.
A hypernephroma is staged from stage 1 to stage 4, in ascending order of severity.
Staging tests may include a bone scan, a positron emission tomography scan, and a chest X-ray.
About a third of people with a hypernephroma have disseminated cancer cells by the time of diagnosis.
Treatment
There are five types of standard treatments for a hypernephroma. One or more can be used to treat cancer.
- Surgery can include different types of procedures. During a partial nephrectomy, part of the kidney is removed or the entire kidney may be removed. Depending on the extent of the disease, more extensive surgery may be needed to remove the surrounding tissue, lymph nodes, and the adrenal gland.
- Radiation therapy involves the use of high-energy x-rays to kill cancer cells. Radiation can be administered externally or placed internally.
- Chemotherapy uses drugs to kill cancer cells. It can be administered orally or intravenously, depending on the drug that is chosen. This allows the drugs to enter the bloodstream and reach cancer cells that may have spread to other parts of the body.
- Biological therapy, also called immunotherapy, works with the immune system to attack cancer. Enzymes or substances made by the body are used to defend the body against cancer.
- Targeted therapy is a newer type of cancer therapy. The drugs are used to attack certain cancer cells without harming healthy cells. Some drugs work on blood vessels to prevent blood flow to the tumor, reducing its size.
