A few risk factors for kidney cancer include³:

• Sex: RCC is twice as common in men than in women.
• Race/Ethnicity: American Indian and Alaskan Native people have the highest rates of kidney cancer in the U.S.
• Personal or Family Health History: A strong family history of RCC increases your risk and is highest in people that have a sibling that was diagnosed with RCC. People with advanced kidney disease also have a higher risk of RCC. You may be at an increased risk for kidney cancer if you take certain pain medications (e.g., acetaminophen, aspirin) long term and/or have high blood pressure.
• Genetic and Hereditary Risk Factors: People that inherit gene changes are at higher risk of RCC, and these conditions include von Hippel-Lindau disease, Birt-Hogg-Dubé (BHD) syndrome, tuberous sclerosis, hereditary leiomyomatosis and renal cell cancer, hereditary paraganglioma-pheochromocytoma syndromes, Cowden syndrome, BAP1 tumor predisposition syndrome, sickle cell trait and disease and hereditary papillary renal carcinoma.
• Smoking
• Being Overweight
• Chemical Exposure: Risk of RCC increases with workplace exposures to certain substances such as trichloroethylene and cadmium.

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