Kidney Cancer

Small, slow-growing kidney tumors may be monitored to avoid the need for more aggressive treatment before it becomes medically necessary.

Minimally invasive surgery, including robotic surgery, involves small incisions. It may be a treatment option, depending on the size and stage of your kidney cancer, and may result in quicker recovery time and less pain. CT, MRI, and ultrasound create high-quality images that guide surgeons during the procedure and allow them to remove as much of the cancer as possible.

Extreme heat and freezing temperatures are used to remove, or “ablate,” small kidney tumors. These minimally invasive techniques are performed as outpatient procedures. Radiofrequency ablation relies on heat generated through electrodes at a high frequency. Cryotherapy uses freezing gases in a similar fashion. Both types of energy are targeted at the kidney through a needle-like probe, which is inserted into the kidney under the guidance of advanced imaging.

Urologic surgeons who are specially trained in vascular techniques perform complex surgery, including blood vessel reconstruction, when tumors spread through the vascular system. Our patients experience positive outcomes as a result of our experience performing more of these surgeries than most centers in the Southeast.

Kills kidney cells with high-energy rays that reach the tumor through external beams emitted from a machine, or through inserted special wires, seeds, or wafers implanted near the tumor.  While there are limited circumstances when radiation is used for kidney cancer, it is sometimes considered necessary.

Medications that block the growth of blood vessels that feed kidney tumors may help shrink your tumor. Other medications we give block certain biological pathways to keep the tumor from growing as it typically would.

Delivered by self-injection, this therapy improves the body’s ability to fight cancer by boosting biologic substances, called BRMs (biologic response modifiers), in the body. BRMs regulate and enhance the body’s immune response, which helps the body fight disease.  

Administered orally or through an IV, chemotherapy may be recommended after surgery to kill cancer cells or slow cancer growth. Not considered a standard treatment for kidney cancer, but may be used when kidney cancer doesn't respond to immunotherapy or targeted therapy.