Kidney Cancer

Types

Kidney cancer development

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Renal cell carcinoma is the most common form of kidney cancer, followed by transitional (urothelial) cell carcinoma. Physicians detect about 50,000 new cases of renal cell carcinoma in the United States each year, according to the American Cancer Society. Surgery is the preferred treatment for curing localized renal cell cancer.

Renal cell carcinoma usually first appears in the cells lining the small tubes of the nephrons (blood filtration structures), and tumors tend to grow as a single, outward protruding (exophytic) mass; one or more masses can develop at the same time and can appear in one or both kidneys.

Transitional cell carcinoma is rare cancer that develops in the tissue forming the lining (collecting system) of the urinary tract. This lining connects the kidneys (renal pelvis) to the tubes (ureters) which transport urine to the bladder. Transitional cell cancer can also initially appear in the kidney's ureter ducts or in the bladder.