Author: KCCure

This month, we have had the opportunity to share some remarkable RCC survivor stories revealing the depth and breadth of the patient experience. We are grateful to all of the patients and caregivers who participated in this effort. Your stories provide a rich and honest narrative of the patient experience, reminding us that kidney cancer is not one disease and that experiences vary for so many rea...

My kidney cancer was found shortly after I saw blood in my urine in December of 2010. Like everyone else who gets a cancer diagnosis, I experienced the sickening anxiety of being informed I had a suspicious mass.  In my case, I was told over the phone by a urology PA that the ultrasound had detected a “large mass” in my right kidney that was probably malignant. A radical nephrectomy (laparosc...

My name is Catherine Yutmeyer. I am 39 years old and live in Central Illinois with my husband and 7 year old son. I have practiced family medicine as a PA for 14 years. I never expected to be a patient myself, and especially not to be the youngest cancer patient in my practice.  My cancer journey started in March of 2020. I felt great and had no symptoms. I was standing in front of the mirror...

In December 2017 I got diverticulitis for the first time in my life. My gastro doc sent me for a CT scan to see extent of the problem. He called me a few days later to tell me that I had a 5.7cm tumor in my right kidney and told me to see my urologist as soon as possible.  I saw my urologist in early January 2018 and he confirmed from the scan that it looked like clear cell renal cell carcino...

In May of 2016 I coughed up blood multiple times. My doctor recommended I go see him to avoid expensive emergency room costs since it sounded like a sinus infection. The next day I went it and alas, I had a sinus infection. For precautionary purposes he ordered a chest scan to rule out any other issues and ease my anxiety. After my scans results came in they found a 5cm mass in my right lung. Bein...

August 6, 2019: I was experiencing: A cough I couldn’t shake. Unexplained weight loss. Terrible night sweats. Fatigue. Exhaustion. (Slept from after dinner until morning on weekdays, and all weekend long). and Digestive discomfort.  I KNEW something was not right. Everyone kept saying it was menopause.  My PCP ordered a chest x-ray and blood work.The chest x-ray showed four small nodules in m...

I was diagnosed with kidney cancer 12/4/07. I had passed out at a Providence Medical Center fundraiser with a room full of doctors. An ultrasound was ordered which showed an enlarged right kidney. This was followed up with a CT Scan which showed an eight cm tumor in the right kidney and several small tumors in my lungs.  I had my right kidney removed right after Christmas. As luck would have ...

I was finally diagnosed in 2017 after a couple of years complaining to my Veteran Affairs (VA) doctor that I didn’t feel right. I finally had to leave the VA and go to a private group. They thought I had a kidney stone again. They did a CT and saw a cyst on my kidney.  The “cyst” was there from a scan years earlier but the doctor wanted an MRI. I almost didn’t go, but my girlfrien...

My journey started in June 2019. I was 47 at the time, turning 48 in September. I went out for a run with my wife and came back and urinated what looked like pasta sauce! Needless to say, after a bladder scope and CT scan it was determined that I had a 10 cm x 8 cm x 9 cm mass on my left kidney. Scans also showed a horseshoe kidney as a complicating factor.  There were nodules on my lungs at this ...

On March 2, 2020, I went to the emergency room with what I was pretty sure was appendicitis. A CT scan confirmed the appendicitis but the docs also informed me that I had a 7.7 cm mass on my left kidney. Renal Cell Carcinoma (RCC).  I had a radical nephrectomy of my left kidney on March 22 (after sweating out whether COVID restrictions were going to cancel my surgery).  Post surgery, my ...

Brian Rini, MD is a professor of medicine and chief of clinical trials at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center (VICC) in Nashville, TN. He is a key opinion leader in the clinical investigation and management of kidney cancer. In honor of Kidney Cancer Awareness Month, Dr. Rini shared some of his views on where the field is today and what we have to look forward to in the future. KCCure: What is the mos...