Editor’s Note: From September 10 to 14, 2025, the 28th Annual Meeting of the Chinese Society of Clinical Oncology (CSCO) was held in Jinan, Shandong. With the theme “Standardizing Diagnosis and Treatment, Leading Innovation”, the conference brought together leading domestic and international scholars. The Renal Cancer session featured the highly anticipated release of the 2025 CSCO Renal Cancer Guidelines, setting a new standard for improving treatment outcomes and promoting standardized care across China. Following the conference, Oncology Frontier – Urology Frontier invited Professor Fangjian Zhou from Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center to discuss the groundbreaking advances in renal cancer management and the quality-control experience of the Guangdong Cancer Center. 

Q1. Targeted Therapy Plus Immunotherapy – A Game-Changing Strategy

Prof. Fangjian Zhou:In renal cancer—especially advanced disease—we have witnessed remarkable progress in recent years. Historically, treatment relied heavily on single-agent targeted therapies. The introduction of immunotherapy expanded options for patients, and today, the combination of targeted therapy with immunotherapy has dramatically prolonged survival.The latest 2025 CSCO Renal Cancer Guidelines now formally recommend the combination of toripalimab plus axitinib as a first-line therapy. This recommendation is supported by the pivotal phase 3 RENOTORCH trial, jointly led by Professors Jun Guo and Yiran Huang. This landmark study was the first in China to explore a targeted-plus-immunotherapy regimen in the first-line treatment of advanced renal cancer—and its results are highly encouraging.

With this domestically developed drug combination backed by robust Chinese clinical data, we have not only expanded treatment access but also provided patients with an effective, evidence-based therapeutic option. For those living with advanced renal cancer, this represents a highly efficacious and hopeful new choice.

Q2. Bridging Urban–Rural Gaps Through Quality Control Systems

Prof. Fangjian Zhou:The establishment of the Renal Cancer Quality Control Committee is of great significance. It sets forth a series of standards and benchmarks with the core goal of promoting the widespread implementation of evidence-based guidelines such as the CSCO Renal Cancer Guidelines. This ensures that patients, regardless of which hospital they visit, can receive standardized treatment and achieve comparable outcomes.

In Guangdong Province, as pioneers in this effort, we have adopted three key measures:

1. Guideline Dissemination: Leveraging the committee platform, expert teams travel to grassroots hospitals to deliver guideline-focused lectures, systematically teaching essential treatment principles, core techniques, and follow-up management plans.

2. Capacity Building: Through training programs, case discussions, and a hybrid online–offline teaching model, grassroots physicians are supported in fully mastering standardized clinical workflows.

3. Outcome Evaluation: After implementation, we evaluate treatment results—particularly focusing on the improvement in five-year survival rates—and continuously refine processes based on feedback.This closed-loop model of “training–practice–feedback” has been instrumental in improving the uniformity and quality of renal cancer care across the region.

Q3. Early Detection and Multidisciplinary Care Are Key

Prof. Fangjian Zhou:China sees approximately 80,000 new cases of renal cancer each year. Encouragingly, most are now diagnosed at an early stage—especially at major medical centers, where early-stage cases account for 70–80%. This improvement is largely attributable to the growing availability of imaging examinations such as ultrasound and CT scans.For individuals who undergo regular physical checkups, early-stage renal cancer is often detected during asymptomatic phases through routine imaging. In contrast, patients presenting with advanced disease are frequently those who neglect regular health examinations.Treatment of early-stage renal cancer in China is now on par with international standards. Minimally invasive techniques, including laparoscopic and robot-assisted surgeries, have made nephron-sparing partial nephrectomy the preferred choice for eligible patients. In our center, over 70% of surgeries adopt this approach. Previously considered challenging with risks such as massive bleeding, partial nephrectomy is now safer, with less blood loss, faster postoperative recovery (3–5 days hospital stay), and a 10-year survival rate approaching 95%—underscoring China’s leading position in early-stage management.

For advanced disease, China is actively promoting multidisciplinary comprehensive care. Through targeted agents, immunotherapy, combination regimens, and local treatments such as radiotherapy or cryoablation, the five-year survival rate for advanced renal cancer patients has risen from less than 20% a decade ago to nearly 60% today—an extraordinary leap forward. This achievement reflects the close collaboration of multidisciplinary teams and the implementation of individualized treatment strategies.

Conclusion

Overall, whether in early or advanced disease, China’s renal cancer diagnosis and treatment standards have reached international levels, offering patients access to globally aligned, high-quality medical care.