Management of renal masses in transplant allografts at an Australian kidney-pancreas transplant unit.

BACKGROUND: A shift towards partial nephrectomy (PN) in the management of small renal cell carcinoma (RCC) in recent years has prompted a parallel change in the management of rare cases of transplant allograft RCC. There are currently no guidelines on the management of allograft RCC. We present our center experience and review the latest evidence for management of RCC in renal transplant allografts.

METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of the transplant patient registry of a kidney-pancreas transplant center between 1984 and 2012. All confirmed allograft kidney RCC cases were included in this series. MEDLINE search of current literature on renal allograft RCC and selection of appropriate studies were conducted.

RESULTS: A total of 1,241 patients had received either a living, cadaveric, or combined kidney-pancreas transplant at our center, and four cases of allograft RCC were identified. The first case underwent a radical nephrectomy given the central location of the tumor and his young age. The second case underwent an open PN in the setting of a central tumor with minimal morbidity. The third case involved multiple renal lesions that were subsequently treated with radiofrequency ablation (RFA). The fourth case underwent a non-ischemic open PN in the setting of a midpole tumor with minimal morbidity. There have been no cases of local recurrence or metastatic progression at median 21.5 months' follow-up.

CONCLUSION: We have shown the safety and efficacy of minimally invasive techniques such as PN and RFA in a variety of tumors. We consider PN as an appropriate therapy for localized, clinical T1 allograft RCC tumors.