Personal Health Solutions from NaturalNews Replace your toxic laundry detergent with natural laundry soap that grows on trees! (Popular solution!) This top "underground" natural health newsletter brings you amazing new natural cures each month. Save $100! How to treat and cure over 100 health conditions using little-known health secrets How to halt type-2 diabetes with nutritional therapy - over 50% cure rate proven in studies End cravings with this guide to natural appetite suppressants (Download edition available.) How to blend nutritious meals in minutes with Adams' Superfood smoothie recipes (Delicious!) Breakthrough LED lighting technology prevents global warming, saves 90% on your lighting bill • Browse more health books... • Shop our eco-friendly products... All sales help fund NaturalNews operations.

“With increased early detection and treatment of small tumors, we would expect to see a decrease in mortality associated with kidney cancer,” says senior author Brent K. Hollenbeck, M.D., assistant professor of urology at the U-M Medical School. “Surprisingly, that’s not what we found. Our research shows that an increase in detection and treatment is not leading to a reduction in the kidney cancer mortality rate.”

The study – published in the Sept. 20 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute – includes data from nine of the National Cancer Institute’s Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) registries. In all, the researchers examined data from 34,503 patients with kidney cancer.

Over the study period (1983 to 2002), researchers observed a rise in the occurrence of kidney cancer (also known as renal cell carcinoma) for tumors of all sizes. But the greatest increases in kidney cancer incidence were among tumors 4 centimeters or smaller. Tumors of this size, often found in patients without any clinical signs or symptoms, are being detected more and more with the widespread use of abdominal imaging studies, such as MRIs and CAT scans. These small kidney tumors are considered curable by surgery, which has led to a rise in surgery for kidney cancer.

Even as early detection and surgical treatment increased, however, mortality rates caused by kidney cancer during the time period rose dramatically, from 1.2 to 3.2 deaths per 100,000 people in the United States.

These seemingly contradictory findings can be explained, in part, through the rising incidence of larger, more lethal tumors, says lead author John M. Hollingsworth, M.D., fifth-year surgery resident with the Department of Urology at the U-M Medical School. “While more and more small, detectable kidney tumors are being treated, the absolute number of patients with larger, lethal masses has not decreased. And it is these larger, lethal masses that seem to mainly affect mortality,” Hollingsworth says.

The researchers say the data also suggest something else: A proportion of these smaller, incidentally found kidney tumors may not merit surgical removal.

“We’re not saying that surgery for patients with small renal masses is inappropriate,” Hollingsworth says. “Our findings, however, show that their increased treatment has not diminished kidney cancer mortality. This calls to question the effectiveness of our current treatment strategy. Perhaps there are some patients with small kidney tumors for whom surgery is not the best option.”

Kidney cancer is the third most common malignancy of the genitourinary system (the reproductive system and urinary system). The American Cancer Society estimates there will be about 38,890 new cases of kidney cancer (24,650 in men and 14,240 in women) in the United States this year, and about 12,840 people (8,130 men and 4,710 women) will die from the disease.

This study included data from 34,503 kidney cancer patients, including age at diagnosis, race, gender and information about the tumor. During the years 1983-2002, researchers found, the overall incidence of kidney cancer rose from 7.1 to 10.8 cases per 100,000 people in the United States, an increase of 52 percent. The largest increase was among people with tumors 2 to 4 centimeters in size (the second-smallest category of tumors in the study), an increase of 1.0 to 3.3 cases per 100,000 people in the United States.

Mortality rates also increased, most notably among people with the largest group of tumors (greater than 7 centimeters). Deaths caused by cancer in this group rose from 0.3 to 1.4 per 100,000 people in the United States.

“What this shows us is that, despite more frequent surgeries for smaller kidney cancers, mortality among patients with kidney cancer has continued to increase,” Hollingsworth says. “So even while detection and treatment are increasing and more tumors have become detectable, this study suggests a disconnect because we are not decreasing mortality rates.”

In addition to Hollingsworth and Hollenbeck, researchers on the study were David C. Miller, M.D., clinical lecturer in the Department of Urology; and Stephanie Daignault, M.S., a biostatistician with the U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center.

The research was supported by a training grant from the National Institutes of Health, and funding from the Johan and Suzanne Munn Endowed Research Fund of the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Citation: Journal of the National Cancer Institute, Sept. 20, 2006, “Rising Incidence of Small Renal Masses: A Need to Reassess Treatment Effect.”

###

Related Articles

Popular Topics: cancer, kidney cancer, death rate, Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, Breast cancer, Prostate cancer, Heart disease, Depression, High cholesterol, Osteoporosis, Vaccines, Autism, ADHD, Infertility, Weight loss, Cancer, Alzheimer's, Trans fats, Acrylamides, Fluoride, Mercury	Take Action: Support NaturalNews.com Email this article to a friend Share this article on: NewsVine | digg | del.icio.us Permalink to this article: http://www.NaturalNews.com/021012.html Reprinting this article: Non-commercial OK, cite NaturalNews.com with clickable link. <a href = "http://www.NaturalNews.com/021012.html">More Kidney Cancer Is Detected and Treated Early, Yet Death Rate Rises (press release)</a>
Receive our Natural Health Newsletter for FREE Subscribe now (it's free!) to win. We randomly choose a subscriber each month to send $100 in eco-home products or a RealGoods.com gift certificate (our choice). Plus, you'll receive FREE news, articles and action alerts from NaturalNews.com editors and join over 800,000 monthly readers who report extraordinary health improvements after becoming a subscriber! Receive breaking news alerts on natural health solutions, renewable energy, the environment, global warming and more. Receive a free instant download of our $29 Secret Sources guide that reveals top sources for little-known health and diet solutions.	Your Email Address: Free Subscription Code: Enter the numbers you see: 100% free of charge. Unsubscribe anytime. Absolutely no spam. We respect your email privacy.
Recommended Special Report: Seven Words that can Change the World by Joseph R. Simonetta Read this special report now... "Seven Words That Can Change the World reveals the astonishing, simple truths that have the power to forever transform our world for the better while freeing our minds from the enslavement of limiting beliefs. This is not a text for the simple-minded; it is a guiding philosophy for the mindful, intelligent few who are wise enough to seek out -- and recognize -- the higher simplicities of truly purposeful living." - Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, editor of NaturalNews.com	More on NaturalNews.com: • Streaming Health Ranger Videos • CounterThink Cartoons • FREE Special Reports • Podcasts