Renal cell carcinoma metastases in the mediastinum lymph node: case report and literature review

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common malignant lesion of the kidney, accounting for 90-95% of all renal cancers in adult. Approximately, 30% of patients present with metastatic disease at diagnosis, and one-third of the remainder will develop metastasis during follow-up. Presence of distant metastases at diagnosis is a strong independent predictor of poor survival in patients with RCC. RCC metastasizes by haematogeneous and lymphogeneous ways. Pulmonary metastases are common in patients with renal cell carcinoma and usually consist of multiple nodules of varying sizes that develop in both lung fields. In contrast, metastases to the supradiaphragmatic nodes but no pulmonary paranchymal metatases are rare. A 71-year-old male with renal cell carcinoma whom radical nefrectomy and postoperative radiotherapy was performed. After the treatment, computed tomography of the thorax showed the conglomerate lymph node enlargement in subcarinal region. Histology of this lesion was revealed renal cell carcinoma after the broncoscopic biopsy. The present case is discussed in light of the recent literature.

Keywords: Renal cell carcinoma; mediastinal lymph nodes; metastasis; urogenital neoplasms/pathology