How To Prevent And Treat Kidney Cancer

Cryoablation

An individual who has kidney cancer and who is unable to undergo a surgical procedure to remove their malignancy may need to have cryoablation as part of their treatment. Numerous health conditions and problems can make a kidney cancer patient ineligible for a partial or complete nephrectomy. Cryoablation is an alternative option to surgery that has proven to shrink or even eliminate kidney tumors. During this outpatient procedure, a long needle is inserted percutaneously or through the patient's skin and into their kidney tumor. Imaging devices such as CT scans and ultrasound are utilized to help guide the physician performing the cryoablation. Extremely cold gases are passed into the probe that produces a sort of ice sphere on its tip. This very cold gas essentially damages and destroys the cancerous cells by freezing them. The chance of adjacent tissue damage is not as significant in cryoablation compared to partial or complete nephrectomy. Most patients can return home the day of or the day following their cryoablation procedure.