Research Article: Screening for renal cell carcinoma in renal transplant recipients: a single-centre retrospective study
Abstract:
Objectives The primary objective of our study was to evaluate the effectiveness of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) screening in renal transplant (RT) recipients. Design Single-centre retrospective study. Setting and participants 1998 RT recipients who underwent RT at Memorial Hermann Hospital (MHH) Texas Medical Center (TMC) between 1 January 1999 and 31 December 2019 were included and we identified 16 patients (0.8%) with RCC. An additional four patients with RCC who underwent RT elsewhere but received follow-up at MHH TMC were also included. Subject races included white (20%), black (50%), Hispanic (20%) and Asian (10%). Outcome measures The RCC stage at diagnosis and outcomes were compared between patients who were screening versus those who were not. Results We identified a total of 20 patients with post-RT RCC, 75% of whom were men. The median age at diagnosis was 56 years. RCC histologies included clear cell (75%), papillary (20%) and chromophobe (5%). Patients with post-RT RCC who had screening (n=12) underwent ultrasound or CT annually or every 2 years, whereas eight patients had no screening. All 12 patients who had screening had early-stage disease at diagnosis (stage I (n=11) or stage II (n=1)) and were cured by nephrectomy (n=10) or cryotherapy (n=2). In patients who had no screening, three (37.5%) had stage IV RCC at diagnosis and all of whom died of metastatic disease. There was a statistically significant difference in RCC-specific survival in patients who were screened (p=0.01) compared with those who were not screened. Conclusion All RT recipients who had RCC diagnosed based on screening had early-stage disease and there were no RCC-related deaths. Screening is an effective intervention in RT recipients to reduce RCC-related mortality.
Introduction:
Renal transplantation is the mainstay of treatment for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Better immunosuppressive strategies have significantly improved renal allograft survival, but post-transplant malignancies remain a major obstacle to improving long-term survival. 1 Renal transplant (RT) recipients have a fivefold to sixfold increased risk of developing renal cell carcinoma (RCC) compared with the general population. 2 The risk factors for RCC in the general population include smoking, male sex,…
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