The short answer
The most common kidney cancer in adults is renal cell carcinoma, which has several subtypes. Less common types include transitional cell carcinoma. In children, the main kidney cancer is Wilms tumor. The type guides treatment.
Renal cell carcinoma is the most common kidney cancer in adults.
Clear cell is the most common subtype of renal cell carcinoma.
Transitional cell carcinoma is a less common type that starts where urine collects.
Wilms tumor is the main kidney cancer in children.
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The full explanation.
The simple version
Kidney cancer is not one single disease. Knowing the exact type matters. Different types behave differently. They also respond to different treatments. In adults, the most common type by far is renal cell carcinoma. It makes up about 9 in 10 kidney cancers.
Renal cell carcinoma and its subtypes
Renal cell carcinoma starts in the tiny tubes inside the kidney. These tubes filter blood and make urine. This cancer has several subtypes. Knowing which one you have can affect your treatment plan.
- Clear cell — the most common subtype. It makes up about 7 in 10 renal cell cancers. Under a microscope, the cells look pale or clear.
- Papillary — the second most common, at about 1 in 10 cases. These tumors grow in small, finger-like projections.
- Chromophobe — a less common subtype, at about 1 in 20 cases. It is made of pale cells with distinct features.
Clear cell is the most common subtype of renal cell carcinoma, making up about 7 in 10 cases.
Transitional cell carcinoma
A less common kidney cancer starts in a different place. It is called transitional cell carcinoma. It begins in the renal pelvis, where urine collects before flowing to the bladder. It makes up roughly 5 to 10 of every 100 kidney cancers. This type is linked to smoking. It is also linked to some of the same workplace chemicals linked to bladder cancer. It starts in tissue similar to the bladder lining. So doctors often treat it more like bladder cancer than like renal cell carcinoma.
Wilms tumor in children
In children, the most common kidney cancer is Wilms tumor. It is almost always a childhood cancer. It behaves very differently from the adult types described above. It responds well to treatment. Most children treated for it do very well long-term. Adults very rarely develop Wilms tumor.
Why the exact type and subtype matter
Different types and subtypes of kidney cancer grow at different speeds. They also respond differently to treatment. Clear cell renal cell carcinoma often responds well to targeted therapy and immunotherapy. These drugs were developed and tested specifically for it. Other subtypes may respond less predictably to those same drugs. Doctors confirm the exact type by examining tissue, usually after surgery. This helps your team choose the treatments most likely to help you.
What to ask your team
Ask what type and subtype of kidney cancer you have. Ask how common or rare that subtype is. Ask how the type affects which treatments are likely to work best. Ask what the type means for your outlook.
Treatment can differ by subtype
Beyond guiding what to expect, the subtype increasingly shapes specific drug choices. Many of the immunotherapy and targeted therapy drugs used for kidney cancer were studied mainly in clear cell renal cell carcinoma, the most common subtype. Papillary and chromophobe subtypes sometimes respond differently to these same drugs, so your oncologist may recommend a different combination, or a clinical trial, if you have one of the less common subtypes.
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Words to know
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Common questions
What is the most common kidney cancer?
In adults, the most common type is renal cell carcinoma, which starts in the tiny tubes that filter blood in the kidney. It has several subtypes, the most common being clear cell.
What is transitional cell carcinoma?
It is a less common kidney cancer that starts in the renal pelvis, where urine collects before going to the bladder. It is treated more like bladder cancer.
What about kidney cancer in children?
The main kidney cancer in children is Wilms tumor, which is different from adult kidney cancers and usually affects young children.
Why does the type matter?
Different types and subtypes behave and respond to treatment differently, so knowing the exact type helps guide the plan.
Questions to ask your doctor
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Last updated: 2026-08-05Next planned review: 2027-07-07
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How this page was created
Cancer Explained does not originate medical claims. Every page restates guidance already published by the National Cancer Institute, the CDC, the USPSTF and the FDA, in plain language, with the source cited so you can check the original yourself. AI does the translating and organizing; automated checks test claims, citations, clarity and safety before anything publishes. We do not employ clinicians and do not intend to — our work is translation and navigation, not clinical judgment. Nothing here is personal medical advice, and no page can account for your particular situation.
Editorial status: Source checked — This page was written with AI assistance and checked line by line against the sources listed on it. That confirms the sources support what the page says. It is not a medical review, and it does not confirm the page is complete or right for your situation.
Human medical review: not completed. Pages here are not signed off by a clinician before they publish. That is not an oversight we are quietly working around: we restate published guidance and cite it, so the authority belongs to the source rather than to us, and every page names where its claims come from — you can verify us instead of trusting us. Where a volunteer clinician has reviewed a page, their name and credentials appear on it; where no name appears, no clinician has checked it. We are glad to have reviewers and are recruiting them, and we do not hold pages back waiting for one. Use this site to understand your situation and to ask better questions of the people treating you.
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