[Treatment of locally advanced renal tumors].

INTRODUCTION

Locally advanced renal tumors show a high progression rate after surgery. Surgical treatment of renal tumors has some unique characteristics related to involvement of the adrenal gland, vena cava, or regional lymph nodes.

OBJECTIVE

To review the current treatment of locally advanced renal tumors.

MATERIALS AND

METHODS

A review is made of both the different drugs used and the different therapeutic possibilities in these tumors.

RESULTS

Systemic treatment with angiogenesis inhibitors may improve the natural history of these patients. Systemic treatment may be administered before surgery or as an adjuvant to surgical treatment. Early studies showed a decrease in tumor mass when treatment is administered before surgery, but no prospective randomized studies providing adequate evidence for recommending neoadjuvant treatment are available.

CONCLUSIONS

Availability of systemic treatment with angiogenesis inhibitors may open an important field in the treatment of these tumors in both the neoadjuvant setting and as adjuvants to surgery, but no sufficiently solid scientific evidence as to recommend their use is currently available. Randomized studies with sunitinib and sorafenib will probably suggest the adequate approach to be used when their final results are reported.