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Cancer (Oncology)

Kidney Cancer

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Diagnostic Innovations

Home to one of the oldest and most respected kidney cancer programs in the area, NewYork- Presbyterian Hospital has made tremendous strides in the diagnosis and treatment of kidney cancer. The hospital developed the world's first blood test for kidney cancer, and more recently, doctors here also discovered a test used to predict which patients are more likely to have a recurrent malignancy. Research is ongoing to detect markers for kidney cancer, allowing earlier diagnosis of this disease.

Therapeutic Excellence

Radical Nephrectomy

Laparoscopic technology developed at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital enables surgeons to remove the entire kidney through a small incision. For many patients, a radical nephrectomy will not endanger the body's ability to filter waste products, since each person has two kidneys, but doctors here have found that eventual renal failure is becoming more common in patients with only one kidney. Doctors are examining the benefits of performing partial nephrectomies, meaning the tumor and the tissue surrounding it are removed, but the patient is left with one-and-a-half kidneys. Doctors here are also exploring the use of robotics for this procedure.

Immunotherapy

Targeted for the treatment of advanced kidney cancer, immunotherapy uses substances made by one's body or made in a laboratory to boost, direct, or restore a body's natural defenses against the cancer. Shown to reduce or eliminate tumors, Interleukin-2 (IL-2) is currently the only FDA-approved drug used for immunotherapy. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia University Medical Center's newly established Center for Innovative Cancer Management features a specialized IL-2 unit with scientists, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, nutritionists, and psychosocial counselors who were trained in this treatment at the National Cancer Institute. NewYork-Presbyterian Cancer Centers also offer clinical protocols with interferon, AtragenTM (an intravenous formulation of a retinoid) and IL- 2. Physicians are evaluating the combination of interferon and Atragen in patients with metastatic kidney cancer.

Chemoembolization

The interventional radiology team affiliated with the Center for Innovative Cancer Management at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia has developed expertise in combination therapies, including chemoembolization and direct tumor ablation, using CT, ultrasound, and fluoroscopic imaging, for kidney cancer. Chemoembolization blocks the blood supply to tumors, depriving the tumor of its nutrients, and allows delivery of a higher concentration of chemotherapeutic agents directly to the cancer site.

Intravenous Retinoic Acid and Interferon

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital doctors have studied the anti-tumor effects of a novel intravenous formulation of retinoic acid with interferon that has resulted in significant tumor reduction in a number of patients with advanced kidney cancer. Upcoming clinical trials will evaluate using a novel class of drugs called HDAC inhibitors with retinoids.

Gene Chip Profiling

For renal cell carcinoma, doctors at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia are constructing molecular profiles of patient tissue to find a gene that may be associated with advanced disease or a genetic target that may be used for a future immunotherapy treatment.