title: Renal thermal ablative therapy.
abstract: Energy targeting is greatly enhanced through imaging modalities, which greatly assist needle placement or energy delivery to the optimal location for maximal effectiveness. When vital structures obscure access to the renal lesion, laparoscopic mobilization of these structures with direct visualization of the tumor can increase the likelihood of ablation success and minimize complication risk. Ablative therapies are attractive because of their minimal impact on patient quality of life in addition to their morbidity and cost. Although they show promise of efficacy, they must be evaluated with long-term follow-up before they are considered the standard of oncologic care. Renal masses can be treated with a laparoscopic or percutaneous approach depending on tumor location, size, and the available technology and experience of the center.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, G5/339 Clinical Science Center, University of Wisconsin, 600 Highland Drive, Madison, WI 53792-7375, USA.
authors.forename: Samuel P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Sterrett
authors.forename: Stephen Y
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Nakada
authors.forename: Marshall S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Wingo
authors.forename: Steve K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Raymond J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Leveillee