INCIDENCE OF TUMORAL PATHOLOGY IN HORSESHOE KIDNEYS

Objectives: To know the incidence of tumoural pathology among our case s of horseshoe kidney (HK), a congenital anomaly occurring in 0.25% of the population, as well as their prognostic factors and follow-up. Me thods: A total of 82 patients admitted at our Centre between 1967 and 1996 with an HK diagnosis were retrospectively reviewed. We have colle cted a total of 10 cases of HK tumours. We analyse the clinical, diagn ostic, surgical and evolutionary peculiarities of the different HK tum our aetiologies, as compared with those described in literature. Resul ts: Our experience is based on 10 patients - 5 adenocarcinomas, 4 tran sitional cell carcinomas and a Wilms' tumour. Conclusions: We have obs erved that in the case of transitional cell carcinomas, the diagnosis is generally made at an advanced stage. The prognosis of the tumorous disease depends upon the same prognostic factors as in the case of nor mal kidneys. Renal adenocarcinoma is the kind of tumour most frequentl y associated with HKs. Its incidence among the HK cases is not greater than among the normal population. Conservative local treatment criter ia for adenocarcinoma should be valid for HKs as well.