Partial vs radical nephrectomy for clear cell renal cell carcinoma of 4-7 cm

Clear cell tumors have the most malignant behavior of all RCC, but the histology is not known until the tumor has been removed.  We performed a retrospective analysis of 4-7 cm clear cell renal cell carcinomas that compared partial to radical nephrectomy for treatment.  Within the limitations of our retrospective study we found no difference in outcome between patients treated either with partial versus radical nephrectomy.  Therefore we believe that in select cases of renal tumors that are 4-7 cm in size that partial nephrectomy be considered as the treatment over radical nephrectomy in order to preserve long-term renal function. 

Bibliographical reference:

Dash A et al.: "Comparison of outcomes in elective partial vs radical nephrectomy for clear cell renal cell carcinoma of 4-7 cm", BJU Int. 2006 May;97(5):939-45

Atreya Dash

Department of Urology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA