Differential diagnosis of renal cancer in TCM

Kidney cancer is a urinary system disease that is extremely harmful to the body. It not only affects the patient's physical health, but also affects the patient's mental health. Therefore, patients must take early diagnostic measures to detect the disease in time. Let's take a look at the basis for TCM differential diagnosis of kidney cancer!

Before diagnosing kidney cancer, we should first understand the principle of kidney cancer. The kidney is hidden in its location, and its main connection with the outside world is urine. Therefore, hematuria is the most common symptom of kidney cancer. However, the appearance of hematuria must be possible after the tumor invades the renal pelvis, so it is no longer an early symptom. For many years, hematuria, pain and lumps have been called the "triad" of kidney cancer. Most patients have 1 to 2 symptoms when they visit the doctor. About 10% of patients have all the triads, and it is rarely possible to cure. Hematuria is often painless and intermittent. The whole process of hematuria can be seen with the naked eye, and the interval shortens as the lesion progresses. When kidney cancer bleeds a lot, it may be accompanied by renal colic, which is often caused by blood clots passing through the ureter. The blood clots in kidney cancer hematuria may form strips due to passing through the ureter. The degree of hematuria has nothing to do with the size of kidney cancer. Kidney cancer can sometimes manifest as persistent microscopic hematuria.
Lumbar pain is another common symptom of kidney cancer. Most of the time, it is dull pain, which is confined to the waist. The pain is often caused by the growth of the tumor and the swelling of the renal capsule. Blood clots passing through the ureter can also cause lumbago as mentioned above. The pain is more severe and persistent when the tumor invades the surrounding organs and waist muscles. Lumps are also a common symptom. About 1/3 to 1/4 of kidney cancer patients can find enlarged kidneys when they visit the doctor. The kidneys are relatively hidden, and it is difficult to find lumps before kidney cancer reaches a considerable size. Generally, it is a late symptom to feel a lump in the abdomen. Pain is seen in about 50% of cases and is also a late symptom. It is caused by the renal capsule or renal pelvis being involved by the gradually growing tumor, or by the persistent pain in the affected side of the waist caused by the invasion and compression of the connective tissue, muscles, lumbar vertebrae or lumbar nerves of the posterior abdominal wall by the tumor.
There are other differential diagnoses for renal cancer: fever of unknown cause, or metastasis when just discovered, pulmonary symptoms such as fatigue, weight loss, loss of appetite, anemia, cough and hemoptysis. In addition, the effects of renal adenocarcinoma are caused by the endocrine activity of the tumor, including polycythemia, hypertension, hypotension, hypercalcemia, and fever syndrome. Although these systemic, toxic and endocrine effects are non-specific, about 30% of patients first have many mixed manifestations. These are the basis for Chinese medicine in diagnosing renal cancer.