The NHS has issued a warning as a common bedtime symptom could actually signal kidney cancer. Also known as renal cancer, kidney cancer is the sixth most common cancer in the UK.
According to Cancer Research, There are around 13,800 new kidney cancer cases in the UK every year, or 38 each day. Just over half (52%) of those diagnosed go on to survive for 10 years or more, according to the latest figures.
Around 34% of cases are preventable, with the cancer most common in people over 60. As with all cancers, early diagnosis is vital, and can drastically increase a person’s chances of survival.
A new post on X, formerly Twitter, from the official NHS account is warning people to see their GP if they spot certain symptoms. It reads: “Symptoms of kidney cancer may be similar to those of less serious conditions, such as a urinary tract infection (UTI) or kidney stones. Although it’s unlikely you have cancer, it’s important to get your symptoms checked.”
The NHS webpage for kidney cancer is linked within the alert, and further explains the symptoms of kidney cancer – one of these being most noticeable at bedtime. Sweating at night, NHS guidance states, can be a kidney cancer warning sign.
Other symptoms include blood in your pee, a lump or swelling in your back, under your ribs, or in your neck, pain between your ribs and waist that does not go away, loss of appetite or losing weight without trying to, feeling tired or having no energy, and/or a high temperature that does not go away.
Further NHS guidance reads: “Some of these symptoms are common and can be caused by many different conditions. Having them does not definitely mean you have kidney cancer. But it’s important to get them checked by a GP.
“This is because if they’re caused by cancer, finding it early can mean it’s more treatable.”