renal cell carcinoma
Meaning of renal cell carcinoma: Renal cell carcinoma is the most common form of kidney cancer in adults, arising from the tubules that filter blood within the kidney.
Definition of renal cell carcinoma
Renal cell carcinoma is the most common type of kidney cancer occurring in adults. It begins in the lining of the renal tubules, the tiny structures within the kidney responsible for filtering blood and forming urine, and it is distinct from cancers that arise in the central collecting portion of the kidney or from kidney cancers that occur mainly in children.
Renal cell carcinoma was once widely known by the historical name hypernephroma, a name reflecting an old and since disproven belief that the tumor arose from adrenal tissue located above the kidney. Modern understanding confirms that renal cell carcinoma instead originates from kidney tissue itself, though the older name is still sometimes encountered.
Renal cell carcinoma is often discovered incidentally during imaging performed for an unrelated reason, since early disease frequently causes no noticeable symptoms, while more advanced disease can eventually cause blood in the urine, back or flank pain, or a noticeable mass.
Also known as
Used in a sentence
A CT scan performed for an unrelated complaint incidentally identified a renal cell carcinoma.
Good to know
Renal cell carcinoma is still sometimes called hypernephroma, a name based on the mistaken historical belief that the tumor arose from adrenal tissue rather than from the kidney itself.
Word origin
Where “renal cell carcinoma” comes from
Formed from Latin ren, meaning kidney, and Greek karkinoma, from karkinos, meaning crab, and the suffix -oma, meaning tumor or swelling.