A clinical study of incidental renal cell carcinoma

Between December, 1991 and October, 1994, 33 patients with renal cell carcinoma were treated at the Yokohama Rosai Hospital. Among them 18 cases (54.5%) were detected incidentally without any symptoms of renal cell carcinoma. There were 10 (55.6%) cases diagnosed by CT and 8 cases (44.4%) diagnosed by ultrasonography, among the 18 incidental tumors. Four of these cases were detected during screening by the Health Service, while fourteen were detected during further examinations for other diseases. Compared to the 15 cases where there were some symptoms of renal cell carcinoma, the diameters of the incidental tumors were smaller, the stages were earlier, and the prognoses were better. These findigns indicate that, for the sake of early diagnosis and early treatment of renal cell carcinoma, it is important to promote abdominal CT or ultrasonography examinations for as many people as possible.