What are the common symptoms of kidney cancer?

Written by Zhou Qi
Nephrology
Updated on November 30, 2024
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Kidney cancer is a malignant tumor of the renal parenchymal tissue. Some patients do not have specific symptoms, especially in the early stages. As the disease progresses, patients may find a mass in the abdomen. Some patients may experience back pain due to the enlargement of the kidney pressing against the renal capsule. Some patients experience bleeding due to the gradual rupture of the tumor, causing visible blood in the urine, which sometimes appears as painless throughout the blood in the urine. These symptoms may indicate the presence of a malignant tumor in the kidney, and diagnosis needs to be confirmed through ultrasound and CT scans.

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Written by Li Liu Sheng
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What are the symptoms of kidney cancer metastasis to the lungs?

Kidney cancer tumor cells are particularly prone to metastasis, with the lungs being one of the common sites for metastases. Once lung metastasis occurs in patients with kidney cancer, numerous symptoms can appear. Typical symptoms include coughing, scanty sputum, severe irritating dry cough, palpitations, chest tightness, shortness of breath, and even chest pain, as well as coughing up blood or severe hemoptysis. Therefore, patients with lung metastases from kidney cancer who exhibit these symptoms should seek medical attention promptly and undergo a lung CT scan. Additionally, patients may experience an increase in body temperature, fevers, weight loss, dizziness, anemia, and particularly fatigue. There may also be a loss of appetite and a general feeling of weakness, which should draw the patients' attention.

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What tests are done to diagnose kidney cancer?

The typical clinical manifestations of renal cancer are hematuria, a mass, and flank pain, but these symptoms generally appear only in the middle and late stages. CT scans often play a decisive role in the diagnosis of renal cancer. Ultrasound examinations are mainly used to screen for the presence of tumors in the entire urinary system, while excretory urography can reveal compression inside the renal pelvis by the tumor, which may show irregular deformations, narrowing, or elongation. Generally speaking, CT scans are quite important for the diagnosis of renal cancer and also play a decisive role.

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Written by Li Liu Sheng
Nephrology
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What are the symptoms of kidney cancer?

Kidney cancer is a common tumor in urological surgery, and a typical symptom in patients with kidney cancer is the appearance of hematuria. The characteristic of this hematuria is that it is painless visible hematuria throughout the course. Initially, the severity of the hematuria is relatively mild, occurring intermittently. However, over time, the hematuria gradually worsens, and the intervals shorten, even leading to significant bleeding. Another symptom of kidney cancer is back pain, which is caused by the increased size of the tumor pulling on the kidney, causing pain. When the tumor presses, it can also lead to severe back pain. A mass is another common symptom of kidney cancer; when a mass is felt on one side of the upper abdomen or back and moves up and down with respiration, it is generally indicative of the late stages of kidney cancer. Therefore, the typical symptoms of kidney cancer are hematuria, pain, and a mass.

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How many centimeters is kidney cancer in the early stage?

Generally speaking, kidney cancers smaller than 4 centimeters are usually considered early stage, but it still depends on individual circumstances, such as whether the tumor has spread or metastasized, and the malignancy level of the tumor cells. Thus, assessing whether it is early or advanced stage requires consideration of these specific factors, and it cannot be simply determined by size alone.

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Written by Zeng Zhong
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Is vomiting severe in renal cancer?

Patients with kidney cancer who experience vomiting are facing a serious situation because nausea and vomiting are common symptoms among late-stage cancer patients and are often more distressing than the pain from cancer itself. Nausea and vomiting may be side effects of treatment, or they might be caused by cancer invading the digestive and nervous systems. People who are ill often feel anxious, which is also one of the reasons causing vomiting. Cancer patients need to pay extra attention to their diet, as this can greatly aid their treatment. In daily life, it is beneficial to consume more fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and legumes, focusing on light meals to ensure a balanced diet and supplement various nutrients.