Treatment Management Strategies
Panelists discuss the shift toward a more personalized approach in metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) management, highlighting the evolving role of risk stratification, the renewed interest in immune checkpoint inhibitors for favorable-risk patients, and the strategic integration of systemic therapy, active surveillance, and surgical interventions to optimize long-term outcomes.
The evolving landscape of metastatic RCC (mRCC) management continues to shift away from rigid prognostic models and toward a more personalized, nuanced approach. Although models like the International mRCC Database Consortium criteria remain useful for prognostication and patient communication, they are no longer central to treatment selection. In favorable-risk patients with low disease burden, active surveillance can be a viable option. Approximately 10% of patients may safely undergo observation, especially when disease progression is slow and asymptomatic. For patients with favorable-risk disease who do require treatment, immune checkpoint inhibitor combinations such as ipilimumab and nivolumab are gaining renewed interest due to emerging long-term survival benefits.
Updated clinical guidelines have begun to reflect these changes, recognizing immunotherapy doublets as an option even in favorable-risk populations. The long-term follow-up data have demonstrated that although certain therapies may not appear effective in the early months, they offer durable outcomes in the long run. This has led to a strategic shift: selecting treatments not only based on immediate tumor response but also on the potential for long-term disease control. In cases where rapid tumor reduction is unnecessary, a long-term strategy using immune-based therapy may offer the best balance between efficacy and tolerability, especially when aiming for prolonged survival with minimal toxicity.
Surgical intervention remains an integral part of a multidisciplinary RCC treatment strategy. The role of delayed cytoreductive nephrectomy has grown, especially in cases where patients exhibit a strong response to systemic therapy. Typically, maximum tumor shrinkage is observed within 6 to 9 months, and it is during this period that surgery may be reevaluated. Additionally, consolidative local therapies, such as metastasectomy or stereotactic radiation, are increasingly considered for oligometastatic recurrences. These approaches aim to extend treatment-free intervals and potentially enable long-term remission or even cure in select patients.
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