Epidemiological studies link obesity, as measured by increased body mass index (BMI) to the incidence of renal cell carcinoma (RCC) as well as to the cancer-related mortality of RCC patients. RCC is the third cancer most robustly associated with increased BMI. Understanding the role of the adipose tissue in renal carcinogenesis is therefore of major importance for the development of novel paradigms of RCC prevention and treatment. Here, we discuss the current knowledge on the impact of obesity on the development and progression of RCC as well as the role of adipose tissue-derived hormones (adipokines) in the conflict between growing tumors and the immune system.
Keywords: adipokines; immune response; obesity; renal cell carcinoma.