Key Points for This Section

Childhood cancer survivors may have late effects that affect the kidneys. Certain factors increase the risk that kidney problems will occur. Kidney late effects may be caused by treatment for Wilms’ tumor and other childhood cancers.

Childhood cancer survivors may have late effects that affect the kidneys.

Kidney late effects may include the following:

• Renal tubular acidosis.
• Fanconi syndrome.
• Kidney failure.
• Hypertension (high blood pressure).

Certain factors increase the risk that kidney problems will occur.

The following may increase the risk of kidney late effects:

• Having cancer in both kidneys.
• Being young at the time of treatment (the younger the child, the greater the risk).
• Having a genetic syndrome that increases the risk of kidney problems, such as Denys-Drash syndrome.

Risk may also be increased in childhood cancer survivors who received any of the following:

• Certain anticancer drugs, such as cisplatin, carboplatin, or ifosfamide.
• Certain antibiotics or antifungal drugs.
• Radiation therapy to the kidney or areas near the kidney.

Kidney late effects may be caused by treatment for Wilms’ tumor and other childhood cancers.

Glossary Terms

A drug used to treat infections caused by bacteria and other microorganisms.

A drug that treats infections caused by fungi.

A term for diseases in which abnormal cells divide without control. Cancer cells can invade nearby tissues and can spread to other parts of the body through the blood and lymph systems. There are several main types of cancer. Carcinoma is cancer that begins in the skin or in tissues that line or cover internal organs. Sarcoma is cancer that begins in bone, cartilage, fat, muscle, blood vessels, or other connective or supportive tissue. Leukemia is cancer that starts in blood-forming tissue such as the bone marrow, and causes large numbers of abnormal blood cells to be produced and enter the blood. Lymphoma and multiple myeloma are cancers that begin in the cells of the immune system. Central nervous system cancers are cancers that begin in the tissues of the brain and spinal cord.

A drug that is used to treat symptoms of ovarian cancer that has come back after treatment with other anticancer drugs or to treat advanced ovarian cancer that has never been treated. It is also used together with other anticancer drugs to treat non-small cell lung cancer and is being studied in the treatment of other types of cancer. Carboplatin is a form of cisplatin that causes fewer side effects in patients. It attaches to DNA (the molecules inside cells that carry genetic information and pass it from one generation to the next) and may cause cancer cells to die. It is a type of platinum compound.

A drug used to treat many types of cancer. Cisplatin contains the metal platinum. It kills cancer cells by damaging their DNA and stopping them from dividing. Cisplatin is a type of alkylating agent.

Any substance, other than food, that is used to prevent, diagnose, treat or relieve symptoms of a disease or abnormal condition. Also refers to a substance that alters mood or body function, or that can be habit-forming or addictive, especially a narcotic.

A group of kidney disorders that cause protein, sugar, minerals, and other nutrients to be lost in the urine. Symptoms include weakness, bone pain, and passing a greater than normal amount of urine. One form of Fanconi syndrome is inherited and is usually found in infants. Fanconi’s syndrome may also be caused by other diseases, a lack of vitamin D, or exposure to heavy metals or chemicals, including certain anticancer drugs.

Inherited; having to do with information that is passed from parents to offspring through genes in sperm and egg cells.

A blood pressure of 140/90 or higher. Hypertension usually has no symptoms. It can harm the arteries and cause an increase in the risk of stroke, heart attack, kidney failure, and blindness. Also called high blood pressure.

An anticancer drug that belongs to the family of drugs called alkylating agents.

One of a pair of organs in the abdomen. Kidneys remove waste from the blood (as urine), produce erythropoietin (a substance that stimulates red blood cell production), and play a role in blood pressure regulation.

Side effects of cancer treatment that appear months or years after treatment has ended. Late effects include physical and mental problems and second cancers.

The use of high-energy radiation from x-rays, gamma rays, neutrons, protons, and other sources to kill cancer cells and shrink tumors. Radiation may come from a machine outside the body (external-beam radiation therapy), or it may come from radioactive material placed in the body near cancer cells (internal radiation therapy). Systemic radiation therapy uses a radioactive substance, such as a radiolabeled monoclonal antibody, that travels in the blood to tissues throughout the body. Also called radiotherapy and irradiation.

A rare disorder in which structures in the kidney that filter the blood are impaired, producing urine that is more acid than normal.

A set of symptoms or conditions that occur together and suggest the presence of a certain disease or an increased chance of developing the disease.