Stereotactic body radiotherapy for primary renal cell carcinoma and adrenal metastases

The incidence of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) and metastatic adrenal lesions continues to rise and present evolving complexities in terms of management. Technical challenges in treatment delivery are compounded by the setting of an ageing patient population with multiple medical co-morbidities. While the standard of care treatment for both primary RCC and oligometastatic adrenal lesions has typically been surgery, a number of patients may be medically or surgically inoperable, and for whom alternative options require consideration. Additionally, in metastatic disease, surgery presents an invasive option, sometimes with unacceptable risks of perioperative morbidity and therefore is considered a less desirable option to some. Stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is an established radiotherapy technique that is rapidly being incorporated into many radiotherapy departments, particu-larly with the increasing availability and capabilities of modern linear accelerators to deliver precise image guided treatment. There are considerable advantages of SBRT including its ability to provide a non-invasive ablative treatment with very few treatment sessions, with emerging evidence showing promising rates of local control (LC) and low associated mor-bidity. This review details the use of SBRT for primary RCC as well as adrenal metastases, focusing on issues including patient selection, technical considerations, and patient out-comes. Furthermore, this review explores some recent insights into the radiobiology of RCC, the immunomodulatory effects of SBRT, and the use of systemic agents with SBRT.