Clinical characteristics and outcomes in renal transplant recipients with renal cell carcinoma in the native kidney

BACKGROUND/AIMS: We investigated the incidence and clinical characteristics of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in the native kidney of renal transplant recipients. METHODS: Between 1991 and 2010, 1,425 patients underwent kidney transplantation at our institution. We retrospectively evaluated the clinical features and outcomes in renal transplant patients with RCC in the native kidney after renal transplantation. RESULTS: The patients included three males and two females with a mean age of 63 years (range, 52 to 74). The incidence of RCC was 0.35%. The median interval between renal transplantation and RCC occurrence was 16.2 years (range, 9 to 20). All of our patients with RCC had developed renal cysts either before (n = 3) or after (n = 2) renal transplantation. The mean duration of dialysis was 12 months (range, 2 to 39). Of the five patients, four underwent dialysis treatment for less than 8 months. All the RCCs were low grade at the time of diagnosis. Four patients underwent radical nephrectomy, and one patient refused the operation. The four patients who underwent radical nephrectomy showed no evidence of local recurrence or distant metastasis during the median follow-up of 2.9 years. However, the patient who did not undergo surgery developed spinal metastasis from the RCC 6 years later. CONCLUSIONS: This study suggests that the follow-up period is an important factor for the development of RCC in renal transplant recipients, and more vigorous screening with a longer follow-up period is required in renal transplant recipients.