Kidney/Renal

To date, there are no evidence-based screening guidelines or established opportunities for the prevention of these malignancies. DCEG researchers seek to identify risk factors in relation to occupational and other environmental and lifestyle exposures and determine the source of black/white incidence disparities in the U.S.  

Cancer Stat Facts from NCI SEER for Renal Cancer 

Select studies include:

Genome-wide Association Study of Kidney Cancer

There is a clear genetic component to renal cancer etiology, with an approximately two-fold increased relative risk among individuals reporting a first-degree relative with renal cancer. DCEG has been leading genome-wide association studies over the past decade to identify genes affecting our susceptibility to this malignancy.

For more information, contact Mark Purdue or Stephen Chanock. 

A map of the world showing rates of kidney cancer by country. The highest rates are in Lithuania, Czechia, and Uruguay.
Mutational Signatures Point to Possible Kidney Cancer Causes

An NCI Cancer Currents blog post features research co-authored by Stephen Chanock.

  • Drinking Water Contaminants

    Studies of water contaminants that are thought to be associated with cancer risk, including arsenic, disinfection byproducts, nitrate, and Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS).

  • Case-Control Study of Renal Cell Cancer in Eastern Europe

    A hospital-based case-control study conducted in collaboration with the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) to evaluate kidney cancer risks in relation to occupational and other environmental and lifestyle exposures in six centers across Eastern Europe.

    Factors being evaluated include occupational exposures, lifestyle factors, medical conditions, markers of genetic susceptibility, and tumor molecular characteristics.

  • Characterization of Renal Cell Carcinoma Uncommon Histological Subtypes

    Somatic studies utilize tumor samples compiled from various efforts in Italy, the US, Eastern Europe, and Guatemala. Investigations are ongoing for papillary renal cell carcinoma, collecting ducts, and chromophobe renal cell carcinoma.

    As more samples and accompanying exposure information are collected, investigators are able to study increasingly rare cancer subtypes.

  • PFAS Exposure and Risk of Cancer

    Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), the most well-studied per- and polyfluoroalkyl Substance (PFAS), has been classified by IARC as a possible human carcinogen based in part on limited epidemiologic evidence of associations with cancers of the kidney and testis in heavily exposed subjects.

    To address the gaps in our understanding of the carcinogenicity of PFAS, DCEG has launched a series of studies aimed at identifying specific cancers associated with PFAS at exposure levels typically found in the general population.

  • Renal Cell Cancer Case-Control Study

    A population-based case-control study conducted in the metropolitan areas of Detroit and Chicago in collaboration with Wayne State University and the University of Illinois at Chicago.

    Findings suggest that black-white differences in hypertension and chronic kidney disease might explain a substantial portion of the racial disparity in kidney cancer incidence.

Research News