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Cryosurgery of Kidney Tumors
In the past, kidney cancer patients faced few treatment options. If their tumors were small enough and in the correct location, the cancer could be removed along with a small portion of the kidney, leaving some of the organ behind. This caused the patients to face long, painful recoveries. Many cancers required the doctor to remove the entire organ, which created even more complications. While kidney removal is still sometimes the only option, medical advances have provided kidney cancer patients with a new choice – cryosurgery of kidney tumors. If you are diagnosed with kidney cancer, your physician will discuss the different treatment options with you and help you make an informed decision about which treatment is best for you.

Who Qualifies for This Treatment?

Not all kidney cancer patients qualify for cryosurgery. In order for the procedure to be effective, the tumors must be located on the outer edge of the kidney and be under four cm in size. Your doctor will be able to determine if this minimally invasive procedure is a good choice for you.

The Procedure

If you choose cryosurgery, the doctor will begin the procedure by making small incisions in your abdomen. Through these incisions, the doctor will remove a small portion of the tumor to confirm with the pathology lab that it is cancerous. If it is, the cryosurgery begins.

The doctor will insert cryotherapy needles into the kidney through the incisions. These needles have tiny tips that are placed directly into the tumor. The needle placement is guided by ultrasound imaging. Temperature sensors are also inserted into the tumor. The doctor then infuses the tumors with argon gas, which causes a ball of ice to form at the tip of the needle. Once the area reaches the temperature that kills the cancer, the tumor is allowed to thaw slightly with the help of helium gas. This cycle is repeated two more times to ensure that the tumor is completely killed.

Patients who undergo cryosurgery for kidney cancer are usually released the day after the procedure. During the procedure the blood supply to the tumor is cut off completely, which causes the tumor to die. Eventually it will disappear. Patients will be tested after the procedure to ensure that the tumor did die.
 
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