New guy with renal cell carcinoma saying hello

tampatownguy
tampatownguy Member Posts: 6
in Kidney Cancer #1

Hi:

I was told on May 2nd that I have a 1/2" RCC on my right kidney.  At age 67 it's the first cancer discovered in or on my body.  My oncologist/surgeon asked me if I wanted to schedule surgery for a partial or if I want to wait 6 months for another scan to see what progression, if any, has occured.  She thinks going in with minimal invasion and freezing the lesion is the best method.

I'd certainly appreciate any and all replies related to you folks that have gone through this.  Of course it's daunting at this point in time and fear of the unknown is piled on top of the knowledge of the cancer.

Thanks in advance to you!

Tony

Comments

  • Texas_wedge
    Texas_wedge Member Posts: 2,798
    #2
    Hello

    Welcome, Tony! 

    How did they determine that it's cancerous?  Biopsy? At not much larger than a centimetre, the weight of expert opinion these days would be in favour of surveillance rather than intervention of any kind at this point, unless there's a good reason for it.  How is your general health and fitness?

    You're right that the fear of the unknown is the worst part.  Still, you're now among friends who have knowledge of this game and we can, between us all, provide plenty of support and advice.

  • MDCinSC
    MDCinSC Member Posts: 574
    #3
    You've come to the right place!

    You will find good information here, as well as open minds and ears, and engaging hearts. We have an occasional old grouch too, but I can't help myself!  Cool

     

    There is no question you can't or shouldn't ask. My suiregery was less than a week ago. I had a Hand assist laparascopica radical.   There wasn't any question with mine.  You have time to get your thoughts together and develop an effective plan. Good luck!  Holler for a friendly word or a handshake!

     

  • foxhd
    foxhd Member Posts: 3,181 Member
    #4
    MDCinSC said:

    You've come to the right place!

    You will find good information here, as well as open minds and ears, and engaging hearts. We have an occasional old grouch too, but I can't help myself!  Cool

     

    There is no question you can't or shouldn't ask. My suiregery was less than a week ago. I had a Hand assist laparascopica radical.   There wasn't any question with mine.  You have time to get your thoughts together and develop an effective plan. Good luck!  Holler for a friendly word or a handshake!

     

    Sounds small

    Most would watch with cats at maybe 3 months. How do they know it is cancer?

  • icemantoo
    icemantoo Member Posts: 3,361 Member
    #5
    MDCinSC said:

    You've come to the right place!

    You will find good information here, as well as open minds and ears, and engaging hearts. We have an occasional old grouch too, but I can't help myself!  Cool

     

    There is no question you can't or shouldn't ask. My suiregery was less than a week ago. I had a Hand assist laparascopica radical.   There wasn't any question with mine.  You have time to get your thoughts together and develop an effective plan. Good luck!  Holler for a friendly word or a handshake!

     

    One lucky new guy

    Tony,

    Applying for membership in our club with a 1.3 cm tumor makes us all very envious of you. Almost all of us started with a lot more baggage and few if any real choices to choose between. It sounds like you have been offered 3 choices. A partial, watch and wait and the Iceman special*, freeze the little sucker. A lot depends on your heath and whether you have any heart issues. At 67, almost 3 years younger than the Iceman surgery is not fun. I had mine at a young 59. If I were you I would seek a second opinion as there seems to be emerging discussions in the medical community about rushing into surgery with tumors under 4 cm for persons over 66, A lot of the concern is whether the surgery poses a cardiac risk.

    Whatever choice you make after being fully informed will be the right one. At this point the tumor is too small to have spread and whatevev surgery you choose , if you do choose surgery it is as closs to a 100% cure as you are going to get.

    Icemantoo

    * My name Icemantoo has nothing really to do with the freezing procedure or my gang affiliation. Both my father and grandfather were in the retail ice business, hence I am an Icemantoo.

  • tampatownguy
    tampatownguy Member Posts: 6
    #6
    Thanks to all who replied and

    Thanks to all who replied and shared your experiences and advice.  I have to say I find comfort from your words and already feel I'm among friends.

    There has been no biopsy and the determination that the lesion is cancerous was made from the CT scan which shows a change in characteristics from a scan done 6 months previous.   I can't recall the precise description given to me by the oncologist.  She is also a surgeon and has 30 years experience so I felt confident regarding her diagnosis.  The lesion was found incidently when a scan was ordered due to a stomach ailment caused by (now known and dealt with) H-Pylori.  My treatment is with the VA facility here in Tampa and I just don't know if second opinions are an option.

    I have diabetes (don't inject), high blood pressure but no heart problems.  I do also have mild COPD.

    What is the freezing surgery like?  How long would I be incapacitated?  How long of a hospital stay is involved?  Is there a source that can tell me the success rate and perhaps recurrence statistics?

    Once again, thank you~

    Tony

     

  • tampatownguy
    tampatownguy Member Posts: 6
    #7
    MDCinSC said:

    You've come to the right place!

    You will find good information here, as well as open minds and ears, and engaging hearts. We have an occasional old grouch too, but I can't help myself!  Cool

     

    There is no question you can't or shouldn't ask. My suiregery was less than a week ago. I had a Hand assist laparascopica radical.   There wasn't any question with mine.  You have time to get your thoughts together and develop an effective plan. Good luck!  Holler for a friendly word or a handshake!

     

    MDC in SC~
    Knowing you're

    MDC in SC~

    Knowing you're only a week away from your surgery and still took the time and effort to reply, I want to extend my appreciation to you.

    Best of luck with your continued recovery and best of good fortune in the future.

    Tony in Tampa

  • MDCinSC
    MDCinSC Member Posts: 574
    #8
    tampatownguy said:

    Thanks to all who replied and

    Thanks to all who replied and shared your experiences and advice.  I have to say I find comfort from your words and already feel I'm among friends.

    There has been no biopsy and the determination that the lesion is cancerous was made from the CT scan which shows a change in characteristics from a scan done 6 months previous.   I can't recall the precise description given to me by the oncologist.  She is also a surgeon and has 30 years experience so I felt confident regarding her diagnosis.  The lesion was found incidently when a scan was ordered due to a stomach ailment caused by (now known and dealt with) H-Pylori.  My treatment is with the VA facility here in Tampa and I just don't know if second opinions are an option.

    I have diabetes (don't inject), high blood pressure but no heart problems.  I do also have mild COPD.

    What is the freezing surgery like?  How long would I be incapacitated?  How long of a hospital stay is involved?  Is there a source that can tell me the success rate and perhaps recurrence statistics?

    Once again, thank you~

    Tony

     

    Be Cool; Walk tall!

    Stay in touch and keep us posted as to what is happening with you! Like it not, you're part of the group.

    I am 66 years old, mild COPD, Chronic A-Fib, just lost 60 lbs to bring my A1C down from 7.5 to 5.8, and feel like I have a lot of living left to do.  I had surgery for removal of a 3cm malignant basal cell from my forehead just over a year ago. 

    Mine was discovered off of a routine to diagnose an issue with diverticulosis. Glad they found it.

    Surgery was performed at the VA Hospital in Augusta GA one week ago today.  Service and care before and after the surgery was mediocre to good, at least on the floor. Quality of care from the urology folks was excellent!

    Stay in touch!

     

    Michael

     

  • B in Indiana
    B in Indiana Member Posts: 6
    #9
    Cryosurgery

    Hi Everyone:  I am new here.  I found out quite incidentally in December that I had a 2cm growth on my left kidney.  Had follow up MRI and was advised that there was a 50/50 chance it was cancer.  Had percutaneous cryosurgery last Wednesday.  The doctor said he is 99% sure it won't come back.  I had general anaesthesia as I was told that it is actually quite painful and also because during the procedure, the patient has to hold their breath when instructed to do so.  The radiologist said that when a patient is only sedated, they sometimes are not able to follow those instructions. 

    So, here I am - healing and hoping.  Procedure was a little more than I thought it would be.  I am still quite sore.  It feels like I have been hit in the back.  Also have a large eggplant size swelling in my stomach from the side to the navel on the side where they did the procedure.  It is very numb to the touch but hurts if I cough. 

    Given the 3 choices (partial, total or cryo), I think I am still happy with my choice; even with all of the post surgical complaints.

  • B in Indiana
    B in Indiana Member Posts: 6
    #10
    Forgot to add that yes, it

    Forgot to add that yes, it was clear cell carcinoma.  I am 60.  Female.  No family history of kidney cancer. I don't smoke or drink or been around any of the chemicals which may or may not be linked to this disease.

  • tampatownguy
    tampatownguy Member Posts: 6
    #11
    B in Indiana said:

    Cryosurgery

    Hi Everyone:  I am new here.  I found out quite incidentally in December that I had a 2cm growth on my left kidney.  Had follow up MRI and was advised that there was a 50/50 chance it was cancer.  Had percutaneous cryosurgery last Wednesday.  The doctor said he is 99% sure it won't come back.  I had general anaesthesia as I was told that it is actually quite painful and also because during the procedure, the patient has to hold their breath when instructed to do so.  The radiologist said that when a patient is only sedated, they sometimes are not able to follow those instructions. 

    So, here I am - healing and hoping.  Procedure was a little more than I thought it would be.  I am still quite sore.  It feels like I have been hit in the back.  Also have a large eggplant size swelling in my stomach from the side to the navel on the side where they did the procedure.  It is very numb to the touch but hurts if I cough. 

    Given the 3 choices (partial, total or cryo), I think I am still happy with my choice; even with all of the post surgical complaints.

    B~
    It's nice of you to share

    B~

    It's nice of you to share the surgical procedure you had only 6 days ago.  It must be uncomfortable at the computer this early after the procedure, judging from your description of your pain and swelling.

    The question I have for you is, why did you decide on the percutaneous cryosurgery as opposed to the laparoscopic?  I'm new to this so my medical terminology is limited but I think I understand laparoscopic to be less invasive and with smaller incisions.

    Good luck with your recovery!

    Tony in Tampa

     

     

  • B in Indiana
    B in Indiana Member Posts: 6
    #12
    Percutaneous Cryosurgery

    Hi Tony:

    I was told that the percutaneous procedure would be the least invasive and would produce the same results as a laparoscopic cryo.  It meant being able to leave the hospital on the same day and only needing to miss a day or so of work.  I liked that I would probably  be able to return to work the next day (I have a sit down job) but in reality, I took an additional day off work to recover more completely.  

    The doctors also felt that because of the location of my tumor (on the top of the kidney and toward the back) and the fact that is was mostly exophytic (like a small balloon on the surface), the percutaneous method would be the way to go.

    mI did the "wait and see" from December until May.  The tumor did not change size at all.  After the procedure, the Interventional Radiologist (who performed the cryo) told me that it might have been another 20 years before it would have given me any symptoms.

    Please don't let my recovery dissuade you from taking care of this.  I will be seeing the doctor again in 2 days to check on the numbness and swelling and will let you know if what I am experiencing is normal.

    B

     

     

  • tampatownguy
    tampatownguy Member Posts: 6
    #13
    B~
    Thank you for the very

    B~

    Thank you for the very valuable information.  Please do let us know the results of your follow up visit and most of all best wishes for a speedy recovery.

    Tony

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