Cancer screening in end-stage renal disease

Abstract

The increased risk of cancer after renal transplantation is well documented; however there is less agreement about the prevalence and risk of cancer in patients on dialysis. Although, certain cancers such as those of the kidney and urinary tract are more common among dialysis patients, the extremely high mortality rate of dialysis patients when compared to the normal population makes cancer screening ineffective both from the cost perspective as well as the survival benefit that is conferred by pre-emptive screening However, with newer improvements in dialysis techniques and better survival of the dialysis population, this issue needs to be addressed.