Kidney Cancer
Kidney cancer is cancer that forms in the tissues of the
kidneys. Two main types of kidney cancer are renal cell carcinoma and renal pelvis carcinoma.
Renal cell carcinoma is cancer that forms in the lining of the very small tubes in the kidney that filter the blood and remove waste products.
Renal pelvis carcinoma is cancer that forms in the center of the kidney where urine collects. Wilms tumor is another kind of kidney cancer. Wilms tumor usually develops in children under the age of 5.
Smoking cigarettes and the misuse of certain pain medicines over a long period of time are
risk factors for developing kidney cancer. Anything that increases your risk of getting a disease is called a risk factor. Having a risk factor does not mean that you will get cancer. Not having risk factors doesn't mean that you will not get cancer. For more information on risk factors, click
here.
For more information on kidney cancer, visit the
National Cancer Institute and the
American Cancer Society.
Other Kidney Cancer Resources:
En Español:
Information on kidney cancer was adapted from the National Cancer Institute.