Urology Robotic Surgery at The Mount Kisco Medical Group --> Improving the Quality of Life --> 914-242-1520 : How is kidney cancer detected?

What are the kidneys? • What is kidney cancer? • Signs and symptoms associated with kidney cancer • How is kidney cancer detected? • How is the diagnosis of kidney cancer made? •
How is renal cell carcinoma staged? • How is renal cell carcinoma treated? •
Entire vs partial kidney removal • What is laparoscopic surgery? • What is robot assisted surgery? •
What are the benefits of robot assisted partial nephrectomy? • What is renal cryotherapy? •
What can I expect after robot assisted partial or radical nephrectomy?

How is kidney cancer detected?

Most kidney cancers are detected incidentally on imaging tests such as CT scans, MRIs or ultrasounds ordered by doctors for reasons not related to the kidneys. For example, a doctor may order an MRI for a patient complaining of back pain in order to image the spinal column. The kidneys are also often imaged on these tests and a tumor may be found that is unrelated to the patient's back pain. Kidney cancer appears on these tests as a solid growth on the normal kidney.