Kidneys

The stages for renal cell cancer are as follows: 1) cancer is located only in the kidney, 2) cancer has spread to the fat around the kidney, but not to the capsule where the actual kidneys" are stored, 3) cancer has circulated to the main blood vessel that conducts clean blood from the kidney, to the blood vessel that conducts blood from the lower extremities of the body to the heart, 4) cancer has diffused to nearby organs such as the bowel or pancreas or has circulated to other areas of the body such as the lungs
             After the cancer has been treated, it may come back to the affected area or perhaps it may spread. Most patients with renal cell cancer can seek treatment. Chemotherapy, radiation therapy, biological therapy, surgery and radiation therapy are the five types of treatment a person can receive. Dealing with renal cell cancer, surgery is the most common treatment used today. Partial nephrectomy removes some of the kidney around the cancer along with the cancer, simple nephrectomy dispenses of the entire kidney and radical nephrectomy removes the kidney and the tissue around it. Chemotherapy uses drugs to terminate cancer cells. Chemotherapy may be injected into the body by a needle into a muscle or vein or taken orally with a pill. Chemotherapy is known to be a successful treatment because the drugs enter the bloodstream, circulate through the body and can kill cancer cells throughout the body. Radiation therapy uses x-rays and other prominent energy rays to kill cancer cells and decrease tumors. A machine may be used for radiation when dealing with the external part of the body, or materials that contain radiation may be placed through thin plastic tubes which are placed internally in the area where the cancer cells are located. Hormone therapy uses hormones to alleviate cancer cells from getting larger. These hormones may be .
             injected with a needle or taken by pill.