Kidney Cancer Treatment in Utah
Kidney cancer is a disease of the urinary tract. Most cases are caught when the chances for a successful treatment are highest, before the disease has spread to distant parts of the body. As a result, kidney cancer’s five-year survival rate is about 75%.
Kidney Cancer Symptoms:
Due to the location of the kidneys, many kidney cancer symptoms don’t show until the tumor has grown quite large. Most are found during treatment for other medical conditions, such as kidney stones or back pain. If there are symptoms, they vary from person to person.
Kidney cancer symptoms may include:
- Blood in the urine, known as hematuria. This is the most common kidney cancer symptom. Often, hematuria causes the urine to appear rusty or deep red. Other times, it cannot be seen by the naked eye. Hematuria is not a sure sign of kidney cancer, since it can be caused by other medical problems like a kidney stone or urinary tract infection. Every person with hematuria should see a doctor.
- A lump or mass on the side or lower back
- Unexplained fever for a few weeks
- Unintentional weight loss
- Lingering dull ache or pain in the side, abdomen or lower back
- Feeling fatigued or in poor health
- Swelling of ankles and legs. This symptom arises when the kidney tumor prevents the kidney from removing excess fluid in the body.
These symptoms do not always mean you have kidney cancer. However, it is important to discuss any symptoms with your doctor, since they may signal other health problems.
Kidney Cancer Treatment Options:
If you are diagnosed with kidney cancer, your doctor will discuss the best options to treat it. This depends on several factors, including the stage of the cancer and your general health. Your treatment for kidney cancer at Utah Cancer Specialists will be customized to your particular needs.
- Surgery is the most common treatment for kidney cancer.
- Energy ablative techniques is another minimally invasive technique that uses either heat or cold to treat tumors in place, without having to remove any of the kidney.
- Targeted therapy works by stopping or slowing the growth or spread of cancer.
- Immunotherapy recruit the body’s own immune system in the fight against cancer.
- Chemotherapy works by killing fast-growing cells, including cancer cells.
- Radiation therapy uses focused, high-energy photon beams to destroy cancer cells.
- Angiogenesis inhibitors: Researchers developed drugs called angiogenesis inhibitors or anti-angiogenic therapy, to disrupt the growth process.