Medical history (history of illness) represents an important component in the diagnosis of hypernephroma (renal cell carcinoma).
Family history
- Are there any genetic diseases in your family?
- Do any people in your family suffer from kidney disease?
Social history
- What is your profession?
- Are you exposed to harmful working substances in your profession?
Current medical history/systemic medical history (somatic and psychological complaints).
- What symptoms/discomforts (e.g., flank pain; swelling in renal bed) have you noticed?
- How long have these symptoms been present?
- Have you noticed any blood spotting in the urine?
- Have you noticed a herniated varicose vein on the left side?
- Do you feel increased fatigue and tiredness?
- Do you suffer from nausea?
- Do you suffer from loss of appetite and/or weight loss?
Vegetative anamnesis incl. nutritional anamnesis.
- Are you overweight? Please tell us your body weight (in kg) and height (in cm).
- Do you smoke? If so, how many cigarettes, cigars or pipes per day?
Self history including medication history.
- Pre-existing conditions (tumor disease)
- Operations
- Allergies
- Medication history
Environmental history
- Arsenic
- Men: mortality risk (risk of death)/relative risk (RR) 1.75 (95 percent confidence interval 1.49-2.05).
- Women: Mortality risk/relative risk 2.09 (95-percent confidence interval 1.69-2.57).
- Aristolochic acid (constituent of common Easter lucerne; formerly also the main constituent of lady’s gold) – Easter lucerne is a putative medicinal plant that frequently contaminates grain in Balkan regions; The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classifies aristolochic acid as a carcinogen (cancer-causing agent)
- Heavy metal contamination, especially lead or cadmium are discussed
