Current role of cytoreductive nephrectomy in metastatic renal cell carcinoma

Historically, immediate cytoreductive nephrectomy (CN) was considered the standard of care in patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (mRCC) who were fit enough to undergo surgery. Recently, 2 randomized controlled trials, SURTIME and CARMENA, have questioned the role of immediate CN and initiated an ongoing debate on the proper indications and timing of CN. Although some patients still benefit from immediate CN, other patients require immediate systemic treatment, and some of them might benefit from deferred CN in the absence of disease progression. This study provides an overview of the history of CN, an in-depth analysis of SURTIME and CARMENA, and highlights the current indications for performing immediate or deferred CN.