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What is Kidney Cancer?


Kidney cancer or Renal cell carcinomas (RCCs), which originate within the renal cortex, constitute 80 to 85 percent of primary kidney (renal) neoplasms. Transitional cell carcinomas of the renal pelvis are the next most common (approximately 8 percent). Other parenchymal epithelial tumors, such as oncocytomas, collecting duct tumors, and renal sarcomas, are rare.

Kidney Cancer Symptoms


Patients with kidney cancer or RCC can present with a range of symptoms; unfortunately, many patients are asymptomatic until the disease is advanced. At presentation, approximately 25 percent of individuals either have distant metastases or advanced locoregional disease.

Patients with localized disease can present with a wide array of symptoms and/or laboratory abnormalities, or they may be diagnosed incidentally.  The most common presenting symptoms were blood in the urine (hematuria), abdominal mass, pain, and weight loss.

Kidney Cancer Treatments


For patients with isolated, solid kidney masses, resection with either a partial or complete nephrectomy is preferred to biopsy because it provides both the diagnosis and definitive treatment.

Here, Dr. Tony Talebi discusses general concepts of kidney cancer (RCC) with Dr. Jaime Merchan, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center including symptoms, diagnosis, staging, surgery, RFA, high dose IL-2, and chemotherapy treatment for kidney cancer or renal cell carcinoma,Kidney cancer prognosis, what causes kidney cancer, signs of kidney cancer, kidney cancer symptoms, kidney cancer, kidney cancer stage 4, treatment of kidney cancer, kidney cancer association, stage four kidney cancer, small cell kidney cancer, symtoms of kidney cancer, causes of kidney cancer, kidney cancer chemotherapy, what is kidney cancer, kidney cancers, kidney cancer information, kidney cancer prevention, stage 4 kidney cancer, information about kidney cancer,stage iv kidney cancer, kidney cancer signs, kidney cancer symptom, is kidney cancer curable, stage 3b kidney cancer,lungs cancer symptoms, survival rates for kidney cancer, symptoms of kidney cancer, kidney cancer survivors, kidney cancer symptons, kidney cancer survival, treatments of kidney cancer, symptons of kidney cancer, kidney cancer statistics, non small cell kidney cancer, chemo for kidney cancer, kidney cancer survival rate, large cell kidney cancer, effects of kidney cancer, kidney cancer screening, kidney cancer diagnosis, kidney cancer society, kidney cancer clinical trials, kidney cancer metastasis, survival rate kidney cancer, symptom of kidney cancer, info on kidney cancer, new treatments for kidney cancer, how common is kidney cancer.

Dr. Jaime Merchan credentials:

Certifications

American Board of Internal Med-Hematology
American Board of Internal Med-Medical Oncology

Specialties

  • Internal Medicine
  • Hematology/Oncology - Internal Medicine

Roles

  • Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine

Clinical Interests

Gastrointestinal and Genitourinary Malignancies

Research Interests

Tumor Angiogenesis, vascular targeting, experimental therapeutics

Education

2003 Masters
Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts Institute of Technology
1998 Fellowship
Beth Israel Deaconess Med Ctr/Harvard Medical School
1997 Chief Resident
U of Miami/VA Medical Center
1995 Residency
U of Miami/Jackson Memorial Med Center
1994 Internship
U of Miami/Jackson Memorial Med Ctr
1992 M.D.
Universidad Catolica de Santiago de Guayaquil