Serious Warning Signs Of Kidney Cancer

Anemia

Anemia is a condition where an individual does not have an adequate amount of functioning red blood cells in their body. Bone marrow produces red blood cells when a certain hormone is released that tells it to do so. The hormone responsible for commanding the bone marrow to produce more red blood cells is referred to as erythropoietin. The organs responsible for the production of erythropoietin are the kidneys. A healthy individual's kidneys know to make erythropoietin when the oxygen level in the blood they are filtering becomes too low. An individual who develops kidney cancer can experience symptoms of low oxygen in the blood, but their kidneys may be unable to function normally and do not produce any erythropoietin in response to the low oxygen concentration. In these conditions, the affected individual's bone marrow fails to produce enough red blood cells in the body. This malfunction causes an individual with kidney cancer to develop anemia.

Leg And Ankle Swelling

Leg and ankle swelling is also referred to as edema in the medical community. Swelling in the lower extremities of the body occurs when extra fluid is forced through the veins from the bloodstream. Without this mechanism in place, an individual's extremely high blood pressure would cause the veins to become severely damaged and ruptured. Fluids forced from the veins accumulates in the neighboring tissues and is pulled toward the lower extremities by the force of gravity. Fluid balance in the body is regulated by the pituitary gland, adrenal glands, and kidneys. The kidneys are responsible for drawing excess fluid from the blood for excretion through the urine when certain hormones are released by the aforementioned glands. The kidneys do this by drawing sodium from the blood, as fluids follow levels of sodium and vice versa. The kidneys of a kidney cancer patient may be working too poorly to remove excess fluid from the blood, causing edema in their legs and ankles.