Rare Forms Of Cancer To Be Aware Of

Childhood Kidney Disease: Wilms’ Tumor

Wilms’ Tumor, also formally known as Nephroblastoma, is one of the rarest types of kidney cancer that predominantly affects children. Despite its rarity, it is the most common type of kidney cancer in children. This cancer primarily affects children around the ages of three and four, and it becomes less common after age five.

The illness affects approximately one person for every ten thousand individuals worldwide before the age of fifteen, and patients of African descent have slightly higher rates for developing the disease. Wilms’ tumor usually occurs in one kidney but can occur in both as well. There are approximately five-hundred diagnosed cases in the United States every year, but thankfully, the disease is highly responsive to treatment, with ninety percent of patients surviving at least five years. Common symptoms of Wilms’ tumor include abdominal pain, loss of appetite, fever, nausea, and vomiting, possible blood in the urine, high blood pressure, and a painless, palpable abdominal mass.

Next, find out how to properly diagnose this cancer, identify the stages, and the treatment available for children suffering from Wilms’ tumor.