Urologist Questions Urologist

Can the kidney tumor location complicate surgery?

My doctor is recommending my partial nephrectomy be performed by a more experienced doctor because the tumor location is on the back side and the kidney will have to be turned over during the robotic surgery. How much does this complication affect the risks and difficulty of the surgery?

Male | 65 years old

3 Answers

The surgery should be okay. Tumors are frequently on the back of the kidney.

Namrata Sharma Goel, M.D.
I think I’ve already responded to this question. Basically, the tumor needs to be removed. It is a little bit more difficult on the backside, but not much. A good surgeon will be able to handle this for you without a problem. Some tumors are so large, it requires removing the entire kidney, and if that’s needed and that will be needed, but if they feel if the tumor is small, the tumor can certainly be removed through many different ways and the fact that it’s on the back makes it a little bit more difficult robotically, but could be approached many different ways. It’s good that the first surgeon told you to go to another surgeon. You have to have a competent surgeon who can do pretty much anything and I think it’s good that you got referred to a different surgeon.


Yes, you should visit a high volume facility.