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Urologist Dr. Michał Małek makes an important appeal to doctors and patients: remember about the kidneys. These are important organs that we do not think about until we feel ailments. Cancer can develop in the kidneys. It is most easily detected by ultrasound.
- Prophylactic ultrasound of the kidneys should be repeated every 3 – 4 years
- Timely detection of the tumor increases the patient’s chances of recovery. Moreover, kidney cancer does not necessarily mean that the organ needs to be removed
- Modern methods allow the kidney to be preserved even when metastases occur
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage.
Urologist specialist
Head of the operating suite at the Mazovia Hospital. He is certified as a da Vinci surgical robot operator. He graduated from the Medical University of Warsaw, worked at the Urology and Urology Oncology Clinic of the Central Clinical Hospital of the Central Clinical Hospital of the Ministry of Interior and Administration in Warsaw, at the Urology Department of the Międzyleski Specialist Hospital in Warsaw and at the Urology Department of the Provincial Hospital in Legnica. He is also a visiting operator at the Radom Cancer Center and at the St. Wojciech in Gdańsk.
Kidney cancer – where does it come from? What are the risk factors?
The kidneys are extremely important organs of our body. Already in antiquity, they were known about their existence and their great importance. The suffering experienced by the patient afflicted with their disease was described. It was argued that the kidneys are the seat of the soul and that without them man cannot exist, which resulted in the lack of any attempts at surgical treatment. The gradual development of kidney surgery took place only in the modern era.
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The kidneys are located in the lumbar region, and their main function is to filter the blood and purify it from products that are unnecessary or harmful to the body. It is for this reason that they are particularly exposed to toxins and carcinogens absorbed by the body. The growing pollution of the environment in which we live especially affects the kidneys, causing the development of tumors in their parenchyma.
Kidney neoplasms are closely related to cigarette smoking, obesity and hypertension. The incidence of kidney cancer has increased markedly in the last two decades, especially in developed countries.
Mortality in kidney cancer is decreasing. But early detection is crucial
It is very reassuring to know that the death rate from kidney cancer is not rising, and is even falling in countries with the highest level of healthcare. It is closely related to the surgical treatment of tumors in the low disease stage.
This can be achieved by detecting changes in the kidneys as early as possible. Hence the appeal to readers and doctors not to forget about the kidneys and to perform diagnostics for their diseases. It is not extremely difficult because most kidney tumors are detected by routine abdominal ultrasound (ultrasound). Currently, kidney tumors are most often detected accidentally during the diagnosis of other diseases. Therefore, I suggest that everyone over 40 has had a prophylactic abdominal ultrasound scan. I am asking family doctors to include this study as part of their patient care. If there are no deviations in the examination, periodic control ultrasound of the kidneys should be repeated every 3-4 years.
Does kidney cancer mean kidney removal? It doesn’t have to be that way
Kidney cancer can be cured. This is possible if the patient visits the urologist as early as possible. I would like to emphasize that kidney cancer is treated surgically and this applies to both the kidney and metastases (their presence does not exclude a favorable prognosis, because very often they can also be surgically removed). Currently, we can offer patients, in addition to kidney removal, also organ-sparing treatment, and modern treatment is being developed in this direction.
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Removing the kidney tumor and leaving it guarantees the patient’s function and secures for the future in the event of loss of the second organ. It has also been shown that leaving the kidney in place reduces the number of coronary heart events. Currently in many urological departments in Poland, kidney-sparing operations are performed more often than kidney removal. It is comforting that such an operation can also be performed less invasively, namely by laparoscopic access or with the assistance of the Da Vinci robot. These operations allow you to return to work faster and significantly reduce postoperative pain.
Renal-saving surgeries assisted by the Da Vinci robot additionally allow to shorten the time of intraoperative ischemia of the kidney and allow the resection of larger tumors compared to those performed laparoscopically. So let’s take advantage of the progress that has been made in urology. I am concerned about kidney removals from small tumors that still occur, often outside urology departments. Remember to take advantage of consultations and treatment in modern centers offering kidney-saving treatment.
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