Adrenal Cancer

Treatment

Mayo Clinic doctors base treatment on the size and type of your tumor. If your tumor hasn't spread beyond the adrenal glands, your doctor may recommend surgery. Mayo Clinic surgeons treat adrenal cancer using several surgeries, including:

• Laparoscopic adrenalectomy. Your doctor inserts a long, flexible tube with a tiny camera on the tip (scope) into your abdomen through a small cut (incision) in your back or side, and then removes the tumor through other small incisions. This procedure may permit a shorter hospital stay and more rapid recovery compared with other treatments.
• Posterior surgery. During your surgery, your doctor makes an incision in your back above your kidney to reach the tumor. Doctors also may use posterior surgery to diagnose small tumors.
• Surgery through the abdomen (transabdominal). During this surgery, your doctor makes an incision in your abdomen to reach the adrenal glands and remove the tumor. Your doctor also checks nearby blood vessels and organs for cancer.
• Surgery through the chest and abdomen (thoracoabdominal). Doctors at Mayo Clinic use this surgery for very large, cancerous adrenal tumors. This surgery requires a large incision through the chest and abdomen and makes it easier to reach large tumors.

For tumors that are too large for safe removal, your doctor can perform other procedures, including:

• Cryoablation. This procedure destroys tumor cells by freezing them using a special probe inserted into the tumor. The ice crystals formed in the cancer cells disrupt the cells, causing cell death. Use of cryoablation depends on tumor size and the types of surrounding tissue.
• Radiofrequency ablation (RFA). In RFA, your doctor inserts a needle into your tumor to heat and destroy it. RFA destroys tumor cells by heating them to nearly 200 degrees Fahrenheit (93.3 degrees Celsius). The tumor size and surrounding tissue types determine if RFA can be performed.

If your cancer has spread (metastasized), your doctor may perform tumor-reducing surgery (debulking) to improve your quality of life and survival. In debulking, your doctor removes as much of the tumor as safely possible to relieve your cancer symptoms. Your doctor may also recommend the following treatments:

• Chemotherapy. Your doctor may recommend chemotherapy if surgery can't cure your cancer. Chemotherapy may be taken alone or with other treatments, such as surgery or radiation. Depending on your situation, you may receive chemotherapy by mouth or through a vein (intravenous).
• Radiation therapy. Doctors can direct radiation toward the tumor or other places where the cancer has spread. The radiation destroys cancer cells and reduces tumor size. You may receive radiation therapy with chemotherapy and other treatments.
• Medications. Your doctor may prescribe medicine to help control symptoms and health problems resulting from hormones secreted by adrenal tumors.