Owing to the widespread use of CT and ultrasound many patients are often diagnosed with renal masses.

Some may be large and require urgent nephrectomy while others may require partial nephrectomy or even just observation.

My approach is to tailor the treatment to each patient. If the mass is very large or in an unsuitable location a total or radical nephrectomy may be indicated. If the mass is small then I usually try to spare as much kidney as possible by performing a partial nephrectomy. My current practice is to perform these procedures robotically.

In older patients with short life expectancies they may be suitable candidates for observation or radio frequency ablation.

If you are referring a patient with a renal mass then a CT Renal mass protocol and a chest X ray or non – contrast chest CT would be useful. If you have any questions about imaging please contact me – this will streamline the process for our patients.