This is cancer that forms in tissues of the kidneys. Kidney cancer includes:

• renal cell carcinoma (cancer that forms in the lining of very small tubes in the kidney that filter the blood and remove waste products)
• renal pelvis carcinoma (cancer that forms in the center of the kidney where urine collects).
• Wilms' tumor, which is a type of kidney cancer that usually develops in children under the age of 5

Estimated new cases and deaths from kidney (renal cell and renal pelvis) cancer in the United States each year:

• New cases: 51,190
• Deaths: 12,890

Symptoms

Common symptoms of kidney cancer include:

• Blood in the urine (making the urine slightly rusty to deep red)
• Pain in the side that does not go away
• A lump or mass in the side or the abdomen
• Weight loss
• Fever
• Feeling very tired or having a general feeling of poor health

Treatment

Surgery is the most common treatment for kidney cancer. The operation to remove a kidney is called a nephrectomy. There are several types of nephrectomies, depending mainly on the stage of the tumor. Other treatment options are arterial embolization, radiation therapy, biological therapy or chemotherapy.