Kidney cancer highlights of 2025
2025 marked significant progress in kidney cancer diagnosis and treatment. We have compiled a summary of key trial updates and essential educational resources for you, including articles, expert video interviews, webcasts, and podcast discussions.
Article of Month
· Abdominal noncontrast computed tomography scanning to screen for kidney cancer and other abdominal pathology within community-based computed tomography screening for lung cancer: Results of the Yorkshire kidney screening trial
· Clinical applications of microbiome in renal cell carcinoma
· A neoantigen vaccine generates antitumour immunity in renal cell carcinoma
· Open versus robotic-assisted partial nephrectomy in patients with intermediate/high-complexity kidney tumours: final results of the randomised, controlled, open-label, multicentre trial OpeRa
· Stereotactic body radiation therapy for primary renal cancer and genetic markers of response: A phase 2 trial
· Urine glycosaminoglycan scores for surveillance of recurrence in intermediate- and high-risk nonmetastatic clear cell renal cell carcinoma – An observational prospective multicentre diagnostic test cohort study
· MLH1 mismatch repair deficiency predicts exceptional response to immune checkpoint inhibition in clear-cell renal cell carcinoma
Abstracts
· Nivolumab plus cabozantinib (N+C) vs sunitinib (S) for previously untreated advanced renal cell carcinoma (aRCC): Final follow-up results from the CheckMate 9ER trial
· Cabozantinib (C) in combination with nivolumab (N) and ipilimumab (I) in previously untreated advanced renal cell carcinoma (aRCC): Final results of COSMIC-313
· KEYMAKER-U03 Substudy 03B: Pembrolizumab (pembro) and targeted therapy combinations for advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC)
· Advancing non-invasive renal cell carcinoma diagnostics: Proteomic insights from urinary extracellular vesicles
· The role of circulating kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) in metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC): A biomarker analysis of Tide-A, a phase 2 study of first-line avelumab (ave) plus intermittent axitinib (axi)
· Intratumoral microbiota composition regulates tumor progression in clear cell renal cell carcinoma
· Validation of the UICC 8th T staging system and potential refinement with renal parenchymal infiltration or micronodular spread in clear cell renal cell carcinoma
· Preoperative prediction of adherent perirenal fat based on CT radiomics combined with deep learning: A prospective, multicenter study
· Exploratory analysis from NEOAVAX, a neoadjuvant trial of avelumab/axitinib in patients (pts) with localized renal cell carcinoma (RCC) who are at high risk of relapse after nephrectomy
· Hypoxia-inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α) inhibitor belzutifan in von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) disease–associated neoplasms: 5-year follow-up of the phase 2 LITESPARK-004 study
· LenCabo: A randomized phase II multicenter trial of lenvatinib plus everolimus (len/eve) versus (vs) cabozantinib (cabo) in patients (pts) with metastatic clear cell RCC (ccRCC) that progressed on PD-1 immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI)
· First results from RAMPART: An international phase III randomised-controlled trial of adjuvant durvalumab monotherapy or combined with tremelimumab for resected primary renal cell carcinoma (RCC) led by MRC CTU at UCL
· Neoadjuvant immunotherapy in locally advanced clear cell renal cell carcinoma at risk for recurrence or distant metastases: The randomized phase II NESCIO trial
· Metastasis-directed radiotherapy without systemic therapy for oligometastatic clear-cell renal-cell carcinoma: primary efficacy analysis of a single-arm, single-centre, phase 2 trial
Videos
· 2025 update on EAU Guidelines for renal cell carcinoma (RCC)
· Auxiliary technology in robotic surgery and intra-operative visual guidance through AI
· Screening for renal cell carcinoma (RCC)
· Roundtable discussion: ccRCC diagnosis using [89Zr]Zr-DFO-girentuximab
· The management of cystic masses
Webcasts
· Vena cava thrombectomy and robot assisted radical nephrectomy using augmented reality guidance: Technique and experience sharing
· Top 10 tips in robotic tumour thrombectomy: Experience from high volume renal cancer centre
· Stereotactic body radiation therapy for primary RCC
· Progressive disease after adjuvant pembrolizumab: Which is the best systemic treatment option?
· Robotic nephrectomy in level 3/4 caval thrombus
· Robotic Assisted Partial Nephrectomy vs Robotic Radical Nephrectomy for complex tumours: What would you do?
· RCC with venous thrombosis: optimal imaging for surgical planning and imaging-guided surgery
· RCC Case: Systemic treatment for RCC – What to do with the primary tumour? Take it out or let the drug do the work?
Podcasts
· Assoc. Prof. Zhang discusses new kidney cancer trial results
· Prof. Autorino talks about multi-port & single-port surgery options for kidney cancer
· Assoc. Prof. Bianchi talks about RCC with venous thrombosis
· Dr. Rescigno talks about single agent TKI in selected mRCC patients
