Renal cell carcinoma

Abstract

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) accounts for the vast majority of solid renal neoplasms. Standard treatment for localized RCC is partial/radical nephrectomy. RCC has always been considered to be highly radioresistant and thus few studies on definitive radiotherapy have been found for RCC. From 1997 to 2007, ten patients with primary RCC were treated with carbon ion therapy at our institution. The median maximum tumor diameter was 4.3 cm (2.4-12.0 cm), and the median total dose was 72 GyE in 16 fractions. All tumors but one have been controlled with a median follow-up for surviving patients of 86 months. Of four patients who died, one patient died of cancer and the other three patients of intercurrent disease. The tumor response to carbon ion therapy was very distinctive; almost all tumors had been shrinking for years without progression. Although the number of patients was small, initial clinical experience of carbon ion radiotherapy (C-ion RT) at our institution showed favorable outcomes. A formal phase II clinical trial of definitive carbon ion therapy for patients with primary RCC has begun. C-ion RT is expected to be one of the standard treatment options for patients with localized RCC.