Stage 1 Kidney Cancer: thoughts about delaying surgery?

Wednesday is the big day, again. I have all my the scans to determine how things look. You know, I am the eternal optimist, but I would be remiss if I did not say that my anxiety level is a little higher than ususal.

I trust the medical staff...from the schedulers to the radiology techs to the doctors. They are good.

The physicians at Mayo have a good idea about growth speed and whether tumor is threatening to invade another area. I would trust their opinions about waiting a short number of months. I have a small tumor return in left kidney that is not growing, so I chose the option of mri once annually.

Update 12/27/24 - My post-op follow-up meeting with with urologist went relatively well. The incisions are healing very well. However, pathology report shows "Margin Status: invasive carcinoma present at margin "
My urologist said they went in deep and but could not get out the rest of the cancer without further damage to the kidney.
I asked if the left-over cancer could grow. First, he said no, don't worry about it.
Then he said, it probably won't grow. Don't worry about it.
We will monitor (MRI every 3 months the first year and every 6 months the second year.)
This too shall pass.

Update 12/14/24 - I had my kidney surgery on 12/12/24. Urologist removed 10% of my right kidney as planned,
Everything went well, spent one night in hospital. Recovering at home now, Follow up with urologist in 2 weeks.

Thanks Ginger, great suggestion!

@jv1715 Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect! It is always disconcerting to hear news like this, isn't it? As you can see, several people have responded with their experiences.

If you do not feel waiting is a good idea, can you see about getting a second opinion? One way I have approached such a situation with my doctors, is to ask them, "If I was your sister/mother, what would you advise?" Sometimes their response is a surprise.

Whatever you decide to do, be comfortable with it. Do you have further questions?
Ginger

Thanks for sharing ronsale. So glad to hear your tumor is stable and no evidence of metastatic disease.
You are an inspiration to me.

I have commented many times on this site, so I will make it short. I was diagnosed with kidney cancer on my left kidney April of 2023; per urologist my only real option was a total nephrectomy of the kidney. Because of my age - - now 82 - - I have opted out of the surgery up to this time. Instead I have been on Keytruda for the last 6 months and also had five high dose radiation treatments to stop bleeding I experienced from lesion. I know it's a difficult decision to make and everyone has a unique situation, but once one weighs the pros and the cons of each treatment you have to decide and not look back. Cancer is truly a scourge and a life changer no matter what course one takes. My last CT scan done last week shows that after one year tumor is stable and there is no evidence of metastatic disease which is great. I take it a day at a time and try to always remain positive.

Yes. I am very grateful for my Interventional Radiologist. Ablation is a wonderful option for tumors that are under 4 cm.

CindyC
CHrcc

I also had cryoablation on a much larger tumor. If the location on the kidney is good cryo is minially invasive and mostly pain free.