Any kidney tumor is an altered area in the tissue of an organ.
All tumors are divided into benign and malignant. Most often, a simple cyst is found - a cavity with a liquid that never degenerates into cancer. With a simple cyst, patients live a full life for a long time, and it is diagnosed by chance, during medical examinations.
A complex cyst with fluid always requires additional histological examination and appropriate treatment.
A solid tumor of the kidney, which consists of an altered parenchyma, is most often malignant. Among malignant neoplasms of the kidneys, the most common is renal cell carcinoma or adenocarcinoma, sarcoma is less common, and Wililms tumor is even less common.
A benign kidney tumor never has metastases, does not cause swelling and ascites, does not cause pain and does not require urgent treatment.
- Kidney adenoma is common, mainly in men after 40 years. This tumor of epithelial nature, grows extremely slowly, small in size. With an increase of more than 2 cm, when the ureters and blood vessels are compressed, it is considered as a precancerous condition and requires the intervention of doctors.
- Oncocytoma - a rare epithelial tumor of the kidney, which can reach large sizes, is detected by chance, treatment is carried out surgically.
- Angiomyolipoma is a rare type of benign mesenchymal tumor that is more common in women older than 35 years. It is often combined with tuberous sclerosis of the kidneys, a rare hereditary pathology. In such patients, mental retardation, epilepsy, and multiple tumors of other organs are observed. For small sizes, ultrasound monitoring in dynamics is required, and for large tumor sizes, surgical methods of treatment are required.
- Fibroma is a tumor of the kidney whose symptoms are absent altogether until it reaches a large size.
- Lipoma is a tumor of the surrounding adipose tissue and capsule of the kidney, which is treated promptly.
- Hemangioma, developing in the renal pelvis and lymphangioma, are extremely rare.
With volumetric formations, renal colic, lower back pain, blood in the urine, increased blood pressure clinically appear, that is, it becomes extremely difficult to make a differential diagnosis with kidney cancer.
An ultrasound scan, CT scan, biopsy, and histological examination of kidney tissue are performed for diagnosis.
The prognosis for benign tumors is favorable, but requires constant monitoring and repeated studies in dynamics.
Kidney cancer affects mainly men after 45 years. Hematuria appears in the initial stages, there may be traces of blood in the urine for a long time, which should alert the patient. Later, dull pain in the lower back and varicocele appear. Of the common signs, weight loss, temperature, anemia, intoxication, accelerated ESR are noteworthy.
In the third stage of cancer, the tumor itself can be felt, but it is already too late. Hepatic disorders increase, the content of albumin and the prothrombin index decreases, the level of alkaline phosphatase and other enzymes rises.
Confirm that a kidney tumor of a malignant nature will help additional examination methods:
1. Ultrasound Scan
2. Radioisotope examination
3. X-ray examination (angiography, urography)
4. CT scan
5. Abdominal tomography
The prognosis of the disease depends on the age of the patient, on the stage of the disease, on metastases and histological findings. Early diagnosis, young age and immaturity of the tumor increases the chances of a favorable outcome. An unfavorable sign is varicocele, which does not disappear in a horizontal position, accelerated ESR, distant multiple metastases.
Properly performed postoperative immunotherapy increases patient survival by several years.