Common Questions About Kidney Cancer | Kidney Cancer Association (KCA)

Hear from kidney cancer experts as they provide answers and insights to commonly asked questions

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What is Kidney Cancer?	What are the Different Types of Renal Cell Carcinoma?
What Risk Factors May Cause Kidney Cancer?	Is it Possible to Prevent Kidney Cancer?
Are Certain Populations More Likely to be Diagnosed with Kidney Cancer?	What are Symptoms of Kidney Cancer?
Will Someone Always Have Symptoms if They Have Kidney Cancer?	Will a Patient Have Symptoms After Treatment if Their Kidney Cancer Recurs?
Can a Patient Prevent or Reduce the Risk of their Kidney Cancer from Recurring?	If Kidney Cancer Spreads Outside the Kidney, is it Still Kidney Cancer?
Is Kidney Disease the Same as Kidney Cancer?	What Types of Doctors Will You See If You Are Diagnosed With Kidney Cancer?
What Should You Ask Your Doctor Before Treatment?

How is Kidney Cancer Diagnosed?	Does Every Kidney Mass Need to be Biopsied?
What Information Included on a Pathology Report is Most Important to Help Patients Understand their Kidney Cancer Diagnosis?	What are the Stages of Kidney Cancer?
Why is Cancer Staging Important?	What Does ‘No Evidence of Disease’ Mean? Does this Change the Cancer Stage?
How is the Cancer Grade Different from the Cancer Stage?	Is Every Kidney Tumor Given a Grade?
How Soon after Being Diagnosed with Kidney Cancer Should Treatment be Started?	Are there Other Health Conditions that May Act Like, but Isn’t Kidney Cancer?
What Are The Risks and Benefits of a Kidney Biopsy?

What Is Renal Medullary Carcinoma?	What Communities Are Affected by Renal Medullary Carcinoma?
How Are Renal Medullary Carcinoma and Sickle Cell Trait Connected?	What is Papillary RCC?
What Is Translocation RCC?	What Is Chromophobe RCC?
What Is Wilms Tumor?	What Is Collecting Duct Carcinoma?
What Is Chromophobe RCC?	How Do Kidney Cancer Subtypes Influence Treatment?

What Is Hereditary Leiomyomatosis?	What Is the Connection Between Von Hippel–Lindau Syndrome and Kidney Cancer?
Should I Get Genetic Testing for Kidney Cancer?

When is Surgery Necessary to Treat Kidney Cancer?	What is a Partial Nephrectomy?
What is the Typical Length of Stay in the Hospital After a Partial Nephrectomy?	What Recommendations or Restrictions May be Given After a Partial Nephrectomy?
Are There Long-Term Consequences to Having a Partial Nephrectomy to Treat Kidney Cancer?	What is a Radical Nephrectomy?
What is the Typical Length of Stay in the Hospital After a Radical Nephrectomy?	What Recommendations or Restrictions May be Given After a Radical Nephrectomy?
Are There Long-Term Consequences to Having a Radical Nephrectomy to Treat Kidney Cancer?	Is a Partial Nephrectomy Easier to Recover from Compared to a Radical Nephrectomy?
How Soon After a Radical Nephrectomy Do Patients Typically Feel ‘Back to Normal’?	What Symptoms Should be Reported to the Surgeon After a Nephrectomy?
Are there “Normal” or Expected Symptoms that May Not Need to Be Reported After a Nephrectomy?	Is a ‘Big’ Incision Always Necessary for a Nephrectomy?
Can Patients Do Anything Before a Nephrectomy to Be ‘Prepared’ for After Surgery?	Is a Patient ‘Cured’ of their Kidney Cancer After a Nephrectomy?
What is the Emotional Impact of Losing a Kidney Because of Kidney Cancer?

Is Radiation Therapy an Effective Treatment for Kidney Cancer?	How is Radiation Used to Treat Kidney Cancer That is Only in the Kidney?
How is Radiation Used to Treat Kidney Cancer That Has Spread Outside of the Kidney?	What Planning is Needed Before a Patient Starts Radiation?
What are Side Effects of Radiation?	Do Patients ‘Feel’ the Radiation When It’s Being Given?
What is the General Recovery Time after Receiving Radiation?	Are There Any Long-Term Risks to Receiving Radiation?

How and Why Does Cancer Treatment Resistance Develop?	What Is the Difference Between Targeted Therapy, Precision Therapy, and Immunotherapy?
Do You Treat Cancer in the Kidney Differently From Metastatic Sites?	What Should You Think About When Choosing First-Line Kidney Cancer Treatment?
What Is Targeted Therapy?	What Treatment Options Do People With Rare Types of Kidney Cancer Have?

What is a Clinical Trial?	What are the Different Phases of Clinical Trials?
What is the Process to Be Enrolled on a Clinical Trial?	How Does a Provider Determine if a Clinical Trial May Be Right for a Patient?
What Should a Patient Do If They’re Interested in Learning About a Clinical Trial, But Their Provider Doesn’t Discuss It?	What Should Patients Ask Their Provider When Considering a Clinical Trial?
Is Treatment Guaranteed When Participating in a Clinical Trial?	Is a Clinical Trial Only for Patients Who Have Tried and Failed All Other Treatment Options?
Can a Patient Change Their Mind About Participating in a Clinical Trial?	What are the Reasons a Patient May Need to Stop a Clinical Trial?
Does Insurance Usually Pay for Clinical Trials?

What Kind of Side Effects Can Patients Expect From Kidney Cancer Treatment?	How Can Patients Best Manage Side Effects From Treatment?
What Can Patients Do to Mitigate Side Effects From Kidney Cancer Treatment?	How Do You Tell Your Doctor That Your Side Effects Are Too Much to Handle?
What Is the Difference Between Adjuvant and Neoadjuvant Therapy?	What Are Common Side Effects From Targeted Therapy?
How Can I Prevent Side Effects From Targeted Therapy?	How Can I Manage Side Effects of Targeted Therapy?
What Are Common Side Effects Of Immunotherapy?	If I’m Taking Multiple Cancer Therapies, How Do I Know Which Drug Is Causing Which Side Effect?
How Do I Manage Side Effects From Immunotherapy?	What Do I Do If My Side Effects Are Too Much To Handle?
What Side Effects Can I Expect From Kidney Cancer Treatment?	When Should I Report Side Effects To My Care Team?
How Can I Manage Treatment-Related Side Effects?	How Do I Manage Fatigue?
How Do I Manage Hand-Foot Syndrome?	How Do I Manage Loss Of Appetite?
How Do I Manage Diarrhea?

What Kinds of Supportive Resources Do Hospitals Have for Patients Dealing With Cancer?	How Can Kidney Cancer Affect My Relationships?
What Kind of Mental Health Support Do Kidney Cancer Patients Need?	How to Manage Anxiety and Depression That May Be Associated With a Kidney Cancer Diagnosis?
I Worry About My Cancer All the Time. How Can I Manage My Anxiety?	Where Can Patients Connect With Others Who Have Gone Through a Similar Experience?
How Can Kidney Cancer Treatment Affect Daily Activities?	Can You Exercise When You Have Kidney Cancer?
Can You Exercise When You Are Getting Treated for Kidney Cancer?

What Is a Small Renal Mass?	How Concerning is a Small Renal Mass?
What Is the Suggested Approach for a Benign Small Renal Mass?	Can a Small Renal Mass Spread to Other Parts of the Body?
If a Small Renal Mass Is Malignant, What Is the Suggested Approach?	What Is Active Surveillance, and Who Would It Be Appropriate For?

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