Hello,
everyone. I am Dr. Li Huifeng from the Department of Internal Medicine of the Third People’s Hospital of Jiujiang City. Today, I will give you a popular science about kidney cancer. Kidney cancer is one of the most common malignant tumors in the urinary system. It is like a “killer” hidden in the dark, often threatening people’s health unconsciously. There are many reasons for the morbidity of kidney cancer. First of all, genetic factors play an important role in this. There are specific genetic syndromes, and this genetic disorder can put patients at a substantially increased risk of kidney cancer. If a relative in the family has kidney cancer or this genetic syndrome, other family members need to be vigilant and have regular examinations. Living habits and environmental factors are also closely related to the occurrence of kidney cancer. Smoking is one of the clear risk factors for kidney cancer. Many harmful substances in tobacco can damage kidney cells and increase the possibility of cell canceration after metabolism. Long-term exposure to some harmful substances, such as certain heavy metals and chemical raw materials, may also increase the risk of kidney cancer. In addition, obesity is also considered to be related to the morbidity of renal cancer, obesity may cause changes in hormone levels, metabolic disorders, and thus affect the normal function of the kidney and cell status. Kidney cancer often has no obvious symptoms in the early stage, which is also the terrible thing about it. With the development of the disease, the typical “kidney cancer triad” such as hematuria, low back pain and abdominal mass may occur, but when these symptoms appear, the tumor often has developed to a relatively advanced stage. Hematuria is due to tumor invasion of renal pelvis, renal calyces and other urinary system structures, resulting in blood mixed in urine; low back pain may be due to tumor growth that increases the tension of the renal capsule or invades the surrounding nerve tissue; abdominal mass is due to tumor volume increases to a certain extent that can be touched in the abdomen. In addition to these, some patients may also have some non-specific symptoms, such as fever, fatigue, weight loss and so on. Fever may be due to the release of heat from tumor tissue or the absorption of heat caused by tumor necrosis. These non-specific symptoms are easily overlooked or misdiagnosed as other diseases, thus delaying the diagnosis of renal cancer. There are many ways to diagnose kidney cancer in medicine. Imaging examination is an important means, such as ultrasound examination can detect space-occupying lesions in the kidney, and the operation is simple and non-invasive, often used as a preliminary screening method. CT examination can more clearly show the size, location, shape of the tumor and the relationship with the surrounding tissues, which is of great significance for the diagnosis and staging of renal cell carcinoma. In addition, MRI is also helpful in judging the tumor in some cases, especially in some patients suspected of vascular invasion. If renal cell carcinoma is highly suspected by imaging examination, puncture biopsy can also be performed to determine the pathological type, but puncture biopsy has certain risks of bleeding, implantation and metastasis, which need to be carefully assessed. There are various treatments for renal cancer, including surgery, targeted therapy, immunotherapy and so on. Surgery is the most important treatment for renal cell carcinoma. For early renal cell carcinoma, if the tumor does not invade surrounding tissues and distant metastasis, radical nephrectomy can effectively remove the tumor and improve the survival rate of patients. With the development of medical technology, nephron sparing surgery is now available to remove tumors while preserving normal renal tissue as much as possible, which is a better choice for some patients with solitary kidney, contralateral renal insufficiency or bilateral renal cancer. Targeted therapy is an important progress in the treatment of renal cell carcinoma in recent years. Targeted drugs for some specific targets in the development of renal cell carcinoma, such as vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), can inhibit tumor angiogenesis, thereby controlling tumor growth and metastasis. Immunotherapy attacks tumor cells by activating the body’s own immune system, bringing new hope to patients with advanced renal cancer. To prevent kidney cancer, we can start from our daily life. Quitting smoking is a key step to reduce the harm of tobacco to the body. Maintain a healthy weight and avoid obesity by eating properly and exercising properly. For people who are exposed to harmful substances, protective measures should be taken to reduce the exposure of harmful substances. At the same time, regular physical examination, especially for people with family history of kidney cancer and other high-risk factors, should pay attention to kidney-related examinations, strive for early detection, early diagnosis and early treatment, so that we can better fight against this hidden “killer” in the body and protect our health.
