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New treatments for kidney cancer are being studied all the time. That means there is now more hope for survival than ever before. In this section, we explain the different kinds of treatment and how each one works.
There are 2 kinds of general types of treatment for kidney cancer.
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Local treatments remove, destroy, or control the cancer cells in one certain place. Taking out a tumor with surgery is an example of local treatment.
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Systemic treatments destroy or control cancer cells throughout the whole body. Chemotherapy drugs, which travel through the blood, are an example of systemic treatment.
You may have just one kind of treatment. Or you may have a combination of treatments that are both local and systemic.
The choices you have for treatment depend on these factors.
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Size and location of the kidney cancer
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Extent of the disease, called the stage
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Status of your health
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Your age
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Your personal needs or special considerations
Most of the treatments for kidney cancer were developed for renal cell carcinomas, and specifically for clear cell tumors. Data about the efficacy of particular treatments for kidney cancer generally does not apply to the other subtypes. To learn about treatment for transitional cell tumors, see Bladder Cancer.