Genitourinary Oncology Program

Kidney Cancer (Renal Cancer)

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What Is Kidney Cancer?

Dr. Arif Hussain

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Kidney cancer is a disease in which cancerous cells develop in the tissues of the kidney. Kidney cancer occurs when cells in the kidney grow out of control, clump together and form a malignant tumor.

The kidneys are two large, bean-shaped organs -- one located to the left, and the other to the right of the backbone. Kidney cancer may also be referred to as renal cancer.

There are two main types of primary kidney cancer in adults:

  1. renal cell cancer
  2. transitional cell cancer

Renal cell cancer is the most common type of kidney cancer, and accounts for about 85 percent of all kidney tumors. There are about 31,000 new cases of renal cell cancer in the U.S. per year, with about 12,000 deaths per year from the disorder. It is more common in men than women, usually occurring in men over 55 years old.

The information presented in this Cancer Overview refers to renal cell cancer.


This page was last updated on: May 9, 2008.