A population-based comparison of survival after nephrectomy vs nonsurgical management for small renal masses.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To examine population-based rates of cancer-specific and other-cause mortality after either non-surgical management (NSM) or nephrectomy, in patients with small renal masses, as several reports from selected institutions support the applicability of surveillance in patients with small renal masses, but there are no population-based studies confirming the general applicability of this therapy. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Of 43 143 patients with renal cell carcinoma identified in the 1988-2004 Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database, 10 291 had localized small renal masses (