| [ Summary ] |
Acquired renal cystic disease develops in every end stage renal disease irrespective of the original diseases which caused chronic renal failure. The incidence of acquired renal cystic disease is very high, 44% in patients with less than 3 years hemodialysis and 90% in patients with more than 10 years hemodialysis. However, the male predominance is remarkable and male patients reveal more severe cystic changes than female patients. Only the development of acquired renal cysts does not have clinical meaning. There are two very important complications of acquired renal cystic disease, i.e. renal cell carcinoma and retroperitoneal bleeding. As the incidence of renal cell carcinoma complicated with acquired renal cystic disease is very high and renal cell carcinoma exhibits no symptoms, a screening test using ultrasonography or CT scan is necessary to diagnose renal cell carcinoma in dialysis patients. About 50% of dialysis centers in Japan currently perform regular screening tests. Therefore, the prognosis of renal cell carcinoma complicated with acquired renal cystic disease in dialysis patients is almost the same as incidental renal cancer in the general population. |