Image-Guided Ablation of Renal Tumours

Stage 1 renal cell carcinoma which has not spread beyond the kidney is usually surgically resected by removing part or all of the kidney (partial or radical nephrectomy).

Depending on the tumour size, minimally invasive ablation therapy is an alternative treatment especially if you are not an ideal surgical candidate.  Ablation techniques include burning (radiofrequency and microwave ablation) or freezing (cryoablation) to extreme temperatures.  This procedure is usually well tolerated, and performed under sedation or general anaesthesia.   It involves insertion of a ablation needle through a small skin incision into the tumour lesion under imaging (US or CT) guidance.  Ablation causes irreversible destruction of the tumour cells.  At the end of the procedure, the needle is removed and a scan performed to ensure no immediate complications. 

You should discuss with your care team the best treatment option for your case.