A 42-year-old patient with renal cell carcinoma presenting as low back pain: A case report

Abstract

Rationale: Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common renal neoplasm, accounting for 2.4% of all cancers in Korea. Although the usual clinical manifestations of RCC include flank pain, hematuria, and palpable mass, RCC is generally characterized by a lack of early warning signs and is mostly discovered incidentally in advanced stage. This case report describes a 42-year-old Korean man diagnosed with giant RCC who presented with simple back pain.

Patient concerns: The clinical manifestation of a 42-year-old Korean man was chronic back pain.

Diagnoses: Contrast-enhanced computed tomography showed a 19.1-cm sized heterogeneous enhancing mass on the right kidney and tumor thrombosis extending into inferior vena cava.

Intervention: Due to the large size of the tumor and extensive tumor thrombosis, the multidisciplinary team decided to administer neoadjuvant chemotherapy and an anticoagulant. Following 12 cycles of treatment with nivolumab and cabozantinib, he underwent a right radical nephrectomy with an adrenalectomy and tumor thrombectomy.

Outcomes: Treatment was successful and posttreatment he started a cancer rehabilitation program. He was followed-up as an outpatient and no longer complains of back pain.

Lessons: RCC can manifest clinically as back pain, with diagnosis being difficult without appropriate imaging modalities. RCC should be included in the differential diagnosis of patients with low back pain, even at a young age.