Cancer that begins in the kidneys is known as kidney cancer. Obesity, old age, high BP, and smoking aggravate the potential risk of kidney cancer. Thus, people with these risk factors must be particularly careful. Read on to know more about the stages and treatment for kidney cancer.

The stages and treatment for kidney cancer are interrelated; that is, the stage of the disease determines the course of treatment. 
Stages
Kidney cancer, similar to other types of cancer, progresses with time. While the cancer is in its early stages, the cells change and become precancerous. At times, the precancerous cells develop and become cancerous. 

There are three stages of kidney cancer: 

• Localized stage
  In this stage, the cancer is still in the kidney and has not spread across to the other organs. 

• Regional stage
  In this stage, cancer has progressed and has started affecting tissues located around the kidney. 

• Distant stage
  It is the final stage, and cancer has already spread across the body, affecting other organs such as the lungs and liver. 

Treatment
The treatment chosen for kidney cancer depends on the following factors. 

• stage or type of cancer
• The current health of the individual
• History of treatments
• Overall health

The common treatment options include:

Surgery
Usually, the first treatment method adopted by doctors is surgery. Here, surgeons will either remove a part or whole of the kidney, along with the surrounding tissues. If needed, they may even get rid of other tissues and lymph nodes.  

Non-surgical options
When a person is frail or unwell, they might not be fit for surgery. Then, the doctors will opt for the following non-surgical treatment options. 

• Cryoablation
  In this treatment option, cryoprobes are inserted into the tumor, which releases gases. These gasses first freeze the cancer-affected cells. Then it warms them and again freezes them. This cycle combats cancer affected cells. 

• Embolization
  Here, a catheter is inserted in the body, which releases synthetic material into the blood vessel. The material prevents the flow of blood to your kidney. As a result, the tumor does not get the required nutrients or oxygen to grow and ultimately shrinks. 

• Immunotherapy
  The immune system of the body is strengthened here, helping it fight cancer cells. 

• Chemotherapy
  Here, strong medicines are used to kill unhealthy cells. It either stops or delays the progression of cancer. 

• Radiation therapy
  This does not cure cancer but causes the tumor to shrink. 

• Targeted therapy
  As part of this treatment, drugs are used to target only specific genes or functions that cause the progression of cancer.