[The Outpatient Activity of the Onconephrology Clinic of Cremona in the First Semester of 2023].

Abstract

Despite the rapidly growing area of onconephrology in the last decade, nephropathic patients have been rarely involved in clinical trials of cancer therapy, particularly in the case of chronic kidney disease (CKD) stage 4 (CKD4) or stage 5 (CKD5). We could offer better therapeutic opportunities to our patients thanks to the Onconephrology Clinic and the Multidisciplinary group, in which a dedicated team of specialists guarantees the highest level of possible care. In this paper, we analysed the activity of the first Italian OnconephrologyClinic, twelve years after its foundation. We studied retrospectively a cohort of 174 patients referred to our center in the last six months (from 11/01/2023 to 12/07/2023), with a total of 262 visits (40 first visits). We highlight a prevalence of moderated or advanced kidney disease, in contrast with the literature, which is probably the result of a transversal II level clinic with different specialists involved. Furthermore, in patients with a prolonged follow-up, we observed a progressive better attention to every kidney involvement, particularly in patients in active cancer therapy, by the oncologist colleagues. We observed a reduction of treatment withdrawals due to kidney toxicity, thanks to a multidisciplinary approach and experienced-based management. On the other side, we highlight also a delayed addressing of patients with acute kidney injury (AKI), which often results in chronic kidney damage. This could be related to a delayed identification of the reduced renal function, which is difficult to correctly value in patients with cancer.