Level IV tumor thrombus in non-metastatic renal cell cancer? No, thanks. Level II is better. Lessons learned from a case report

Up to 19% of patients with renal cell carcinoma present with a venous thrombus at diagnosis and 1% have a thrombus extending above the diaphragm. The higher the thrombus level, the more challenging the surgery. Cavoatrial tumor thrombus usually requires circulatory arrest and sometimes cardiopulmonary by-pass. We present a case of non-metastatic renal cell carcinoma with a cavoatrial tumor thrombus in a patient who was unfit for cardiac surgery. Eight months of targeted molecular therapy downsized the tumor thrombus to inferior vena cava and allowed us to perform a radical nephrectomy with minimal cavothomy for thrombus resection.