Fifteen-year survivor of renal cell carcinoma after metastasectomies for multiple bone metastases.

This article describes a patient with multiple metastases from renal cell carcinoma who survived and maintained an ambulatory status for 15 years with no recurrence in the spine after en bloc resection of solitary spinal metastasis. Skeletal metastasis from renal cell carcinoma is common, second only to lung metastasis. Surgery plays an important role in the treatment of the metastasis because of its resistance to chemotherapy and radiotherapy. A 60-year-old man had T1N2M1 renal cell carcinoma in the right kidney and synchronous bone metastases at T12 vertebral body and the right humerus. The patient underwent right nephrectomy and en bloc resection of T12 metastasis at the same time using a retroperitoneal approach. He also underwent curetted total excision of metastasis in the right humerus. He underwent radiotherapy and an additional 7 tumor excision surgeries in the right humerus due to repeated tumor recurrences and a pulmonary metastasectomy in the right lung. Thirteen years after initial surgery, he underwent right forequarter amputation due to tumor recurrence and surgical site infection. Fifteen years after initial surgery, he is still alive with no evidence of disease. He has been ambulatory with no tumor recurrence in the spine for 15 years. En bloc resection of solitary spinal metastasis allowed the patient to be ambulatory without recurrence. This contrasts with curetted total excision of bone metastasis in the humerus that resulted in repeated recurrences and surgeries and loss of the arm.