Chromophobe (ChRCC) Type Renal Cell Cancer
The Chromophobe (ChRCC) type renal cell cancer is rare and behaves differently than the more common renal cell carcinoma. Consequently it has not been extensively studied. Unfortunately, there are no proven treatments for the metastatic disease and the many drugs that have been approved for clear cell cancer do not work well for this subtype. At one time chemotherapy was thought to be effective but studies did not confirm it. Overexpression of CD117 on cellular membranes of ChRCC could in the future be a potential target for kinase inhibitors like: imatinib, dasatinib, nilotinib. The potential targets for other kinase inhibitors (sunitinib and sorafenib) in ChRCC seem to be the well known VEGFR and PDGFR but, again, this has not been systematically studied. In conclusion, these observations are the basis for formulating research hypotheses which should be verified in prospective studies. In the meantime, a referral to a clinical trial is probably the best idea for a patient with chromophobe kidney cancer.