3" mass in kidney.

icemantoo said:

Not fun too hear those words
Dear Bob,

Most of us on this board were diagnosed with RCC by accident and then we are told that we have to have surgery right out of the gate. Not fun. Mine was a littte over 9 years ago. Nearly all of our tumors are measured in cm not inches. If yours is in fact 3 cm. instaed of 3 inches it is relatively small and the survival rate approaches 100%. Even at 3 inches, if it has not spread the prognosis is very good. You will find a lot of help on this board getting thru the surgery and then the recovery. First help us out a little by double checking the size of the tumor.

Best wishes,

Icemantoo

Vagusto said:

Doug
Hi Doug

My kidney cancer was found on accident also. I finally had enough with stomach aches coming from the gallbladder area. I went for an ultrasound to confirm. Wondered why the technician was spending soooooo much time on my left side. They found a mass the size of my fist, about the size of my kidney. About three weeks later, what seemed to be an eternity, they took my kidney and the tumor. The recovery was no fun at all!! I had a open radical, lovely 8 inch cut on my tummy. I would say it took about a year before I felt almost back to normal. My Father passed away from kidney cancer 5 years ago. My Grandfather passed away from lung cancer. There is nothing like hearing those words...you have cancer. I try to stay super busy so that it doesn't consume my mind. Some days it works, some it doesn't. We're here to support you.
Take Care
Valerie

lbinmsp said:

Hey Doug!
Nice to meet you - although would have been better had this not been a kidney cancer site!
BUT that being said. You'll get through this. The surgery is no picnic but most definitely survivable and you'll find that the time really flies by! You'll have bad days and then just lay low and rest - walking is the best thing you can do for yourself as you recover - just from one end of your house to the other for the first few days - then you can gradually tackle your driveway and expand further as your strength returns. It is painful but not intolerable. I had an open radical including removal of adrenal gland - tumor was 6.5 cm - and I got off the prescription pain meds within the first week out of the hospital. They gave me a prescription for 'prescription strength' ibuprofin and that worked pretty well.

Bottom line, RCC sucks! No sugar-coating it. And yes, 99.9% of the time, found by accident while looking for something else. You're not alone - all of us here are willing to listen no matter what your mood. Keep posting here - we'll be watching and holding you up in our thoughts and prayers.

KatfromFlorida said:

Hi Doug Welcome
Hi Doug:

I am beginning to believe that we are led to this place by our guardian angels. My surgery was 4 weeks ago and my cancer was also found by accident when I went to the doctor for some other reason.
This is the place if you have questions or if your looking for support as the folks here are all here for the same or similar reasons and an amazing group of people
My surgeon used the davinci robot to remove my 6cm tumor and some additonal tissue but I was able to keep most of my right kidney. Due to your tumor location, size etc this might be something you want to check into with your urologist. Some folks do not have a choice about retaining the entire kidney as the cancer is in control of that, however, if you prefer to try to keep the healthy portion of the organ a partial is your best option. ( If you live in an area where you have access to a surgeon that does this kind of surgery that is)
Also too you must consider whether or not your comfortable with a partial removal as some folks decide to have the entire kidney removed in hopes of no recurrances in the future. Either way the surgery isn't fun and recovery takes time. Good luck with your meeting tomorrow and please keep us posted Prayers and much love being sent your way.

My Best
Kat