[Renal cell carcinoma in adults less than 40 years of age: a particular cancer? Incidence, outcome and review of the literature].

OBJECTIVE: To study the incidence, clinical presentation, pathological prognostic factors and disease outcome of RCC in young adults less than 40-years-old.
MATERIAL AND METHODS: The notes of 400 patients treated by radical nephrectomy for RCC suspicion, between January 1984 and december 1999 were reviewed. Twenty-nine patients (7.25%) were under 40.
RESULTS: The most common histological cell type was clear cell carcinoma, found in 20 patients (69%). At a median follow-up of 80 months, 20 patients (69%) were disease free and 9 (31%) died of the disease. When comparing patients less than 40 years vs older than 40 years, we found significant differences in histology type (clear cell carcinoma 69% vs 91%; P = 0.0001), and tumor stage at presentation (pT2 = 34.5% vs 17.3%; P = 0.04) (pT3 = 20.7% vs. 42%; P = 0.03). Disease free survival was not significantly different between the 2 groups (69% vs 65.7%; Log rank test P = 0.4).
CONCLUSION: Although rare, RCC in young adults seems to follow a course similar to the disease seen in older patients. Stage at presentation was different between the 2 populations however survival was not affected by age.