Multicentricity in renal cell carcinoma

In the era of ultrasound and computerized tomography, when more than 50% of renal cell carcinomas are detected incidently, with a high proportion of small tumors, the standard treatment of radical nephrectomy in the presence of a normal contralateral kidney should be questioned. The main objection against conservative surgery for renal cell carcinoma has been the concern about satellite small renal cell carcinomas, which have been reported in 7% and 19.7% of 100 and 66 kidneys, respectively. We studied the incidence of multicentric neoplasms in 50 kidneys: 27 with renal cell carcinoma and 23 autopsied normal kidneys. The incidence of small renal cell carcinoma in the kidneys with a tumor was 11.1% and that of small nodules in normal autopsied kidneys was 13% (none of them was malignant). The incidence of satellite malignant nodules in patients with renal cell carcinoma 3 cm. or smaller was 3.7% in our series, and 0% and 3% in other series. Therefore, patients who undergo nephrectomy for tumors up to 3 cm. in diameter may be considered as overtreated in 96 to 100% of the cases. We conclude cautiously that partial nephrectomy should be widely accepted in patients with small renal carcinoma and in the presence of a normal contralateral kidney.