Radical nephrectomy for renal cell carcinoma and replacement of an inferior vena cava segment with a xenopericardial graft

Vascular repairs in oncology practice improve quality of life and survival in patients. There is tumor involvement of the inferior vena cava (IVC) and complete removal of its segment followed by repair and the removed IVC portion may be replaced with auto-, allogeneic, and xenogeneic grafts. The purpose of the replacement is to recover adequate venous drainage if acute IVC occlusion develops intraoperatively. The paper describes a case of successful treatment in a 61-year-old female patient with an occasionally detected large right kidney tumor and intraoperative signs of IVC invasion. Radical surgery was performed resecting an IVC fragment and replacing it with a tubularized xenopericardial graft without repairing the ostium of the left renal vein. The postoperative period was uncomplicated. The patient was discharged in satisfactory condition; targeted therapy was recommended. At 6-month follow-up, there were neither signs of tumor progression nor IVC occlusion.