Somatic mutations of the von Hippel–Lindau disease gene in renal carcinomas occurring in patients with long-term dialysis.

Background. Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) frequently occurs in patients with long-term dialysis. Long-term dialysis causes distinctive pathological changes in the kidney, which is known as acquired cystic disease of the kidney (ACDK). It is of great interest to know whether RCCs occurring in the dialytic kidneys harbour the same or similar mutations of the von Hippel–Lindau (VHL) gene as conventional dialysis-unrelated clear cell RCCs so often do. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]