A Practical Approach to Indeterminate and Cystic Renal Masses

Cystic renal masses are a common entity with a wide differential diagnosis encountered by the radiologist in daily practice. Their characterization relies on the Bosniak classification system that has been widely accepted by radiologists and urologists as a pertinent diagnostic and communication tool. It has been designed to separate cystic lesions requiring surgery (categories III and IV) from those that can be ignored and left alone (categories I and II) or followed (category IIF). Utilization of the Bosniak classification requires, first, previous identification of the cystic nature of a renal mass with the exception of very small lesions.