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Surgery (including Cryotherapy)
The USC Institute of Urology houses the premiere center for robotic and laparoscopic minimally invasive treatment for kidney cancer. Surgery to remove all of the kidney (radical nephrectomy) or only the tumor and surrounding area (partial nephrectomyPartial Nephrectomyremoval of diseased part of the kidney while sparing the healthy part ) is the recommended treatment for kidney cancer that has not spread beyond the kidney. In the vast majority of patients, we are able to perform this surgery in a minimally invasive manner. This holds true for even larger-sized organ-confined tumors, up to 10-15 cm in size. When necessary in advanced cases, we offer cutting-edge open surgery as well, in order to provide the best treatment for your specific condition. Generally, smaller tumors can be treated with a partial nephrectomy, while larger tumors and those involving the inferior vena cava (IVC) are treated with complete removal of the kidney and affected areas of the IVC. For some patients with a small renal tumor, cryotherapy, or freezing of the kidney tumor, is a good alternative. In this method, imaging tools are used to locate the tumor within the kidney and freeze the cancer tissue so that it can no longer survive.
Medical Therapy
Recent advances in both immunotherapy and chemotherapy have brought forth more options for treating kidney cancer. In addition to classic chemotherapy drugs that target cancer cells, some forms of kidney cancer respond to medicines which activate the body’s own natural defenses to kill the cancer cells. At USC, we not only provide these options to our patients based on their needs, but we also perform research that has helped advance the field forward in helping to fight kidney cancer.
