Radical Nephrectomy Surgery
The most common reason a urological surgeon does a nephrectomy is to remove a kidney tumor. Such tumors are typically cancerous but may not be (benign) cancerous. Some kidney disorders often involve a nephrectomy.
- Radical (complete) nephrectomy. During a radical nephrectomy, the urologic surgeon removes the entire kidney and often some additional structures, such as part of the tube that connects the kidney to the bladder (ureter), or other adjacent structures such as the adrenal gland or lymph nodes.
- Partial nephrectomy. In a partial nephrectomy, also called kidney-sparing (nephron-sparing) surgery, the surgeon removes diseased tissue from a kidney and leaves healthy tissue in place.