41 yr old Male 4cm Left Kidney cancer found on incidental ct scan - anyone like me out there?

RCC Survivor 11 years now!
Hi Will,

I was 41 years old when they found the 5cm mass on my left kidney. I went through the surgery and I am doing well! It is scary to be told that you have kidney cancer, well, any cancer for that fact. You are very blessed to have found it in an early stage. I had lost my mother to RCC 11 months prior to my diagnoses. The surgery they performed on me was no fun at all. They removed one of my ribs to get the tumor out, radical left nephrectomy. It was growing up inside the rib cage and so I never felt any lumps or did not have any pain to speak of. I one day at work realized that I had it by remembering things my mom and I had talked about the year she lived. It was so weird, like all these light switches going off in my head and I called my DR. out of the blue and asked to be checked. Sure enough, there it was. He thought of course I was just scaring myself but see, I had everthing my mother ever had but 20 years earlier and things were just kind of strange. Nothing real big but just little things that I would assure her of that she was ok and the cancer had not spread without ever thinking, oh my goodness, I have got the same symptons as her!!! Well, I suppose I was under a lot of stress, my husband had just had tripple A surgery the same time as my mother was in the hospital with her kidney being removed, then 6 months later my husband had a heart attack ending in open heart surgery, then 3 months later mom's cancer had spread all over and not to mention I lost my boss and his wife in an airplane accident, two Uncles, one Aunt and my cousin passed. Nothing like a little stress in one's life! The RCC was Stage I/II, in the process of staging, it was bleeding which scares me to a point even still. I guess I just never paid to much attention, my mind was to busy trying to get my husband well and thinking about my mom. I try not to think about it but sometimes I do. Over the years I have met many people who have been through what you and I have been through. My Pastor just lost his right kidney and he is going to be fine. Well, I pray you are doing well, God Bless!

Sincerely,
Diane (RCC sis)

dgilly said:

RCC Survivor 11 years now!
Hi Will,

I was 41 years old when they found the 5cm mass on my left kidney. I went through the surgery and I am doing well! It is scary to be told that you have kidney cancer, well, any cancer for that fact. You are very blessed to have found it in an early stage. I had lost my mother to RCC 11 months prior to my diagnoses. The surgery they performed on me was no fun at all. They removed one of my ribs to get the tumor out, radical left nephrectomy. It was growing up inside the rib cage and so I never felt any lumps or did not have any pain to speak of. I one day at work realized that I had it by remembering things my mom and I had talked about the year she lived. It was so weird, like all these light switches going off in my head and I called my DR. out of the blue and asked to be checked. Sure enough, there it was. He thought of course I was just scaring myself but see, I had everthing my mother ever had but 20 years earlier and things were just kind of strange. Nothing real big but just little things that I would assure her of that she was ok and the cancer had not spread without ever thinking, oh my goodness, I have got the same symptons as her!!! Well, I suppose I was under a lot of stress, my husband had just had tripple A surgery the same time as my mother was in the hospital with her kidney being removed, then 6 months later my husband had a heart attack ending in open heart surgery, then 3 months later mom's cancer had spread all over and not to mention I lost my boss and his wife in an airplane accident, two Uncles, one Aunt and my cousin passed. Nothing like a little stress in one's life! The RCC was Stage I/II, in the process of staging, it was bleeding which scares me to a point even still. I guess I just never paid to much attention, my mind was to busy trying to get my husband well and thinking about my mom. I try not to think about it but sometimes I do. Over the years I have met many people who have been through what you and I have been through. My Pastor just lost his right kidney and he is going to be fine. Well, I pray you are doing well, God Bless!

Sincerely,
Diane (RCC sis)

surgery done Sep. 3rd 2009, Robotic assisted Adrenalectomy
Hello all,

My case was called a Pheochromocytoma and is finally out. I couldnt have asked for better care then that was given at Virginia Mason in Seattle Wa., A Top notch facility with very experienced crews.
My hospital experience started on Wed the 2nd with check in and the humbling pajama party uniform extravaganza, i knew I had been had after having to wear those things. The nurses were bending over backwards to make sure I was comfortable amazing (almost like a cruise ship except for the hospital smell, pain and a few very confused people yelling from there rooms)To clean you out They give you a clear liquid diet menu with a varied selection of chicken broth, jello, and drinks. not very appetizing at first, Make sure you bring a laptop and cell phone for friends and family. They gave me a 16oz clear laxitive drink which actually didnt taste to bad from what I was expecting but when 8:00pm rolled around 10 hrs before operation with nothing happening the nurse introduced me to the dreaded green box called enima ahhgg... which niether patient nor nurse wants to do. After many trips to the bathroom that night (about 6 times) I was totally clear and didnt have any dizzy problems after getting up so was able to go unassisted.

At Surgery time the next morning they wheeled me to another level and started putting in more iv liquids (at this time I had about 4 Iv tubes including one in the neck),kneehigh white pantyhose were put on and the real last words i heard were "this stuff will make you sleepy", I thought the lights would slowly fade and things would get blurry but no the next second you wake up with the words your surgery is done and please put your arms down as your dealing with some pretty intense pain.

The surgery went well and was as planned with a golfball sized mass removed including the left adrenal gland, I now have a 1 1/2" slice cut vertical above belly button and three small 1 inch slices cut horizontal on the left side of abdomen. They kept me in intensive care that first night and had everything monitored by some very caring nurses One nurse even knew how i breathed geez,if you breath to shallow the alarm sounds but thats the way i do it and felt most comfortable with.I had the automatic morphine button which only took about 20 sec. to alleviate pain once pushed and was given a plastic inhalor device to help open up the lungs but could really only breath 1/2 to 3/4 breaths because of the discomfort.

The next day I was put up on the top floor called the penthouse but looked more like the house of pain, again the nurses bent over backwords to make me feel comfortable and made every effort to get what I needed including a hot shower,solid food breakfast and lunch if I wanted it on Sat. the 5th before I was discharged. All in all my experience was the best one could ask for with a very caring bunch of Dr,s, Dr,s in training and nurses.

Phil

RayG said:

Pathology Report
Hi Will,

My details are almost identical to yours, however, my pathology report confirmed the tumor was malignant. While we expected this would most likely be the outcome, I was still a bit shell-shocked having had no real history of cancer in the family.

I am now 11 days post surgery (hand assisted, left laparoscopic nephrectomy). I am still sore & walking slow. I find it difficult to sleep in bed all night and feel more comfortable in my big comfy chair/ottoman. The surgeon advised my employer that the recovery time will be 6-8 weeks, however, I feel this sounds too long considering how I feel now. I work at a desk all day and would appreciate feedback from anyone in a similar situation.

Considering our similarities, I find all the responses you've received here extremely helpful and encouraging. Good luck with your recovery.

RayG

Hi RayG,I had a radical
Hi RayG,

I had a radical nephrectomy r. kidney on 6-29-09. Urologist left my adrenal glands and lymph nodes intact, as they appeared normal from CT scan. I had a 4cm malignant cyst on the lower pole of my right kidney. Had hand assisted laproscopic surgery. 3 smaller incisions and one 4 inch incision on lower abdomen. Final diagnosis was T3a, as the cancer had begun to invade the sinus fat inside my kidney. RCC was grade 2. I am now seeing an oncologist for 6 month followup visits. Today is my 11th week post op. I too work a desk job and took 7 weeks off work. I was feeling fairly well when i returned to work, but I was extremely tired for the first couple of weeks. Don't push it if you don't have too. I'm a fairly active 49 year old female. I'm finally back on my bike and did a 25 mile ride on saturday and am back to spinning, though i find strenous exercise makes me sore again. I feel like 3-4 weeks post op surgery when i over do it. I still have occasional odd aches and pains especially when i get tired. My urologist said I could have these pains for up to 2 years. All the nerves are still healing. I wish you well on your recovery.

WilSchretz said:

Back Pain Question - Answer
Patty,

My back is doing surprisingly well. I have had two discectomies on the L4-5 disc in 1999 and in 2006. As a fellow back pain sufferer you probably know that you have good days and bad days. I still have some occasional outages but for the most part my back is doing well. I had no issues with my back postop or in the 9 weeks since my laprascopic left nephrectomy. I have been out on the golf course multiple times(the first time on Sept 12th which was 8 weeks from surgery), have been working out again and really only had some minor discomfort in my abdomom at the large stitch below my belly button. I have a 6 1/2 inch incision from my belly button down to get the kidney out. As far as I am concerned I am 100% back to normal and have resumed my full active lifestyle again including traveling on business, swimming, golfing etc.. For all of you out there who are either waiting for surgery or have had surgery recently take it from me you will get better, you will feel normal again and this stuff we are going through will be a distant memory.

Patty I would talk to your Doc about the epidoral. I contemplated having one for the surgery but my doc told my that it could delay the recovery process in the hospital because within 24hrs you need to urinate again and get up and walk. The epidoral may delay that because you are basically numb. It really depends on the level of pain you can handle which by the way for me was very high the morning after surgery but once I recieved morphine and percs was not a problem at all. I had no pain two days after surgery and didn't even refill my percoset prescription. No pain today and no back problems...knock wood...

Hopefully this information helps. If you have any other questions let me know.

Good luck and take care

Will

No pain, no pain
Hey Will,
Sounds like your back to normal, thats good. It is 28th of Sept. 3 1/2 weeks after my surgery and I can do everything I could do before surgery +. They say no lifting anything above 10 lbs ( + or - 50 lbs according to my calculations) but after loading a bunch of aircraft junk from an auction in Oregon I count myself very lucky for just being able to breath and lift anything at all. The owner of this aircraft parts company where the auction was died from complications from a simple hernia operation in May so I guess you just never know.
When I forget about my surgery I just look down at my 5 pack and see my war scars it is a constant reminder that no one is invincible. I'm just Thankful that modern surgery has advanced to make these types of procedures routine and mostly uneventful.

Good Luck to all. Phil

shocked and a month later right kidney removed.
I was shcoked Will, I am 54 in great health, I though I had a GI bug. I was sick for a week and a half with vomiting, 103.5* temp and diarrhea; before the Dr. would give me a release to go back to work he wanted a full work up so he did a ultra sound from head to toe checking all my vital organs. I don't know what possesed him to do this but I am so glad he did. He found a 5cm mass in my right kidney. A few days later I had a CAT scam and a week later I saw the Urologist. Here it is a month and a half later and my right kidney and the 7cm RCC have been removed laprascopicly. It has been a world wind month and I still can hardly believe that I had a 7cm tumor in my kidney that might have gone on un-noticed if I had not had a Dr. who ultra sounded all of my orgins.

Now that I have RCC I am still trying to convince myself that it did happen and that my days are numbered. That some day it will return somewhere else and that it will be the death of me. I have read everything I can get my hands on about RCC, I even had a friend at work who's brother-in-law had it he his kidney removed and 3 months later it showed up in his bones and brain; and the toughest part is knowing that IT WILL RETURN we just don't know when or where.

Reba

donna_lee said:

Be positive
Reba-
Don't convince yourself it will return!!! Sure mine returned, twice; first time in a node one year after I had R. Kidney, half my liver, and a set of positive nodes removed with Stage IV and a 12cmx13cmx8cm primary in my kidney. And a second time in a node a year later. All were surgically removable with painstaking work to separate them from their attachments.
But I just got results on 3 tests done last month: CT was good, so no evidence of cancer for previous 15 months; mammogram was good; and colonscopy was good with just a benign polyp.

HOPE is something you need to actively participate in. Surround yourself with positive feedback from family, friends, the coffee shop gal, your exercise class, your cancer support group. Stay healthy with whatever exercise you like, even if it's just walking (cheap, too), and eating a well balanced and good for you amount of food. Plan for events in the future.

I had just turned 63 when I got the news that I had 5-7 months. Then the surgeons said, "OK, we can do this, and get it sll." When my second grandaugher was born a few months later, I promised her I would be around for her wedding. Obviously, what came up as positive nodes in subsequent years was so small that nothing showed on CT's, xrays, and manual exam...or maybe it hadn't even attached at that time.

Last night, they came to dinner, and the 3 & 5 year olds decorated donuts we made out of tube biscuits. Grandma and Grandpa had fun, and we got to send them both home with a sugar high.
So plan for only the best. Aren't you worth it?

Sorry, I'm lecturing. But a positive attitude will go a long way toward helping your recovery and your long term prognosis. Go online and read "CURE", which is also available free on mailed subscriptions. The last issue, about 2-3 months ago had a good article about RCC and the progress that has been made in the drugs that are available. So much has happened in research in the previous 10 years that there really is lots of hope.

Best wishes.
Donna_lee

Be very positive
Hi Donna,

It seems like you are holding up and doing pretty well compare to others. Are you on any medical treatments after the major tumor and its offspring nodules surgeries? If not, you are one of the stronger cases beating the statistics. Mine was T2N0M1 and have not on any medical treatments since. It reoccurred in my July check-up but shrunk a bit last month as to flunked my screening test for RAD001 clinical trial. It makes me wonder that self-healing may very well be possible for us even with mets.

Be very positive everyone,
Jon

agent orange and kidney cancer
Hi, my husband is a Marine (no such thing as an ex-Marine) and served in Vietnam from 68-72 with a year in Vietnam. Quang Tri and Dong HA, Da Nang. 9 years ago kidney cancer was found by a fluke and we were lucky. Marvin lost a kidney to cancer but it does not stop there. Since then he has developed many other health issues of which the VA claims no responsibility. I have researched every thing I can about AO and one of the things I have found was AO was mixed with jet fuel so the AO would adhere to the foliage and it also adheres to humans who walk through the foliage. Jet Fuel has a large component of Benzene. Benzene causes Liver, stomach, kidney and esophageal cancer.

We have hired an attorney and he is sure this will come through in two to five years. Also if anyone was stationed in camp LeJune you need to quickly seek out an attorney who can help you file to be part of the class action suite that is in the works.

Good luck to you
suz