Risk of developing a second primary cancer following a renal cell carcinoma: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Purpose This study synthesizes previous studies to investigate the risk of second primary cancer (SPC) in patients with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) compared with the general population. Methods Following the PRISMA guidelines, four databases were searched for relevant articles without date limits. Studies were included if they reported the standardized incidence ratio (SIR) for SPCs in patients with RCC compared with the general population. Random-effects model employing the Der Simonian and Laird method was used to pool the SIR by SPC sites. Effect heterogeneity was assessed using I 2 . Results Twenty-seven retrospective cohort studies published between 1993 and 2024 were included in the study. The overall risk of developing any SPCs was higher among RCC patients (pooled SIR = 1.32, CI 1.19–1.48). The risk of several SPCs was significantly higher in patients with RCC compared with the general population, including cancers of the contralateral kidney (3.68, CI 1.85–7.24), thyroid (3.05, CI 2.57–3.62), urinary bladder (2.15, CI 1.40–3.30), small intestine (1.98, CI 1.01–3.91), leukemia (1.86, CI 1.28–2.70), pancreas (1.64, CI 1.22–2.19), NH lymphoma (1.55, CI 1.21–1.98), melanoma (1.47, CI 1.15–1.88), prostate (1.44, CI 1.21–1.71), and colorectal (1.25, CI 1.10–1.43), bone (2.31, CI 1.25–4.27), endocrine system (4.33, CI 3.28–5.74) and brain/nervous system (2.20, CI 1.25–3.88). Conclusion Patients with RCC have an increased risk of SPCs compared with the general population. These findings highlight the need to develop strategies for the management of SPCs in these patients.