Whether you’re recently diagnosed with kidney cancer or you’re currently in remission, you may be surprised to learn that your cancer can potentially spread to your lungs. In fact, your lungs are the most common location for kidney-cancer cells to spread to. It can occur as soon as 15 to 18 months after treatment.

If this happens, the lesions or tumors are called lung metastases. About 15 percent of people with kidney cancer already have metastases or metastatic kidney cancer when they’re diagnosed, but others may develop it later in life.

Overall, the risk of metastasis is highest during the first five years after your treatment, with a recurrence rate of 93 percent.

But some studies have found these cancer cells can appear as late as 16 years after a radical nephrectomy (kidney removal surgery). While it’s possible that lung metastases have no symptoms, knowing what could happen could help you better manage your overall health.

Here are potential signs that your kidney cancer has spread to your lungs.

A Cough That Doesn’t Go Away

A persistent cough may be related to anything from the weather and allergies to acid reflux and medications. But it can also occur in people with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) or kidney cancer with lung metastases.

Most people describe this cough as a long-lasting dry cough that worsens with exercise or talking. At times, it can wake them from sleep. It may also be prompted by the cold, which suggests that your throat or airways may be more sensitive.

Sometimes people will develop a cough with kidney cancer unrelated to lung metastases. Instead, it’s caused by a condition known as paraneoplastic syndrome (a disorder that occurs alongside cancer). In these situations, the chronic cough may subside after the cancer is removed with a nephrectomy.

If you have kidney cancer and have been coughing a lot, let your healthcare provider know so they can investigate the cause, possibly through imaging tests.

Shortness of Breath

Shortness of breath, also known as dyspnea, occurs when you feel like you cannot catch your breath, and it can be a common symptom of metastatic kidney cancer. Shortness of breath can occur when you’re climbing stairs, walking the dog, or even while you’re resting.

Everyone experiences shortness of breath differently, but it commonly feels like you’re not getting enough air into your lungs or you can’t take a full breath. You may also feel a tightness in your chest or as if you’re drowning or suffocating. Chest pain and wheezing are also common.

Being short of breath can be scary and troubling and can affect your quality of life. Let your healthcare provider know if your symptoms are bothersome. They may perform a chest X-ray and offer some treatment options.

Fatigue

Fatigue (extreme tiredness or weakness) is a common symptom in almost every type of cancer and can occur if you have metastases in the lungs or any other organ. Not only can it make going about your day-to-day more challenging, but some people living with RCC say the fatigue is sometimes worse than the side effects from the treatment.

If you’re feeling fatigued, you likely have no energy to do the things you used to do. This type of exhaustion goes beyond feeling tired and can sometimes feel overwhelming.

Fluid Around the Lungs

Fluid buildup in and around one or both lungs is called pleural effusion. Often this fluid is located in the pleural cavity, which is in between your lungs and your chest wall. Having pleural effusion may mean that the kidney cancer has spread to the pleural cavity.

At first, this excess fluid may not cause additional symptoms, but depending on its severity, it can cause shortness of breath, cough, chest pain, fever, and even anxiety. If you suspect you have fluid around your lungs, contact your healthcare team.

Your healthcare team may need to remove the fluid through a procedure called a thoracentesis. This procedure involves using a tube to drain the fluid and possibly prescribing antibiotics if there is an infection in the fluid.

Frequent Chest Infections

Upper respiratory infections, or chest infections, occur when germs like viruses, bacteria, or fungi get into your lungs and cause inflammation. If you keep getting chest infections or cannot seem to get rid of them even with treatment, it could be a sign that your kidney cancer has spread to your lungs.

If you have a chest infection that won’t go away or keeps coming back, talk to your healthcare provider about your symptoms. They may be able to shed some light on your overall health, why it keeps happening, and what type of treatment may be best.

Coughing up Blood

Hemoptysis (coughing up blood) could be a sign of lung metastases. Keep in mind, coughing up blood is not the same as bleeding from your mouth or throat. Instead, the blood you see when you cough may look bubbly and is usually bright red or rusty-looking.

It’s also possible that when you cough, you produce mucus that contains streaks of blood. If your cough produces more than a few teaspoons of blood, contact your healthcare provider, especially if you have chest pain, dizziness, and shortness of breath.

Pain or Discomfort in the Chest

Sometimes lung metastases can cause pain or discomfort in your chest area, or the area just below your neck and right above your abdomen. It can also feel like chest tightness or pressure.

Most people worry that if they experience chest pain, it means they’re having a heart attack. But this pain or pressure could be related to a number of different organs or tissues in your body, including your esophagus, muscles, ribs, nerves, or tendons, as well as your heart and lungs.

If you experience chest discomfort without signs of a heart attack (which needs immediate medical attention), call your healthcare provider. Most of the time, pain and discomfort can be managed with medications.

Loss of Appetite and Unintended Weight Loss

If you’re eating less than normal, have no interest in food, or are experiencing unintended weight loss, it could be related to metastasis from kidney cancer, including lung metastases. In fact, loss of appetite and weight loss are common with cancers and can exacerbate your fatigue or weakness.

Let your healthcare team know as soon as you notice a change in your eating habits. They can help you take steps to minimize the potential problems that can occur from losing fluids and weight.

Nail Clubbing

Though rare, sometimes people with lung metastases will develop nail clubbing. This condition causes your fingertips to become enlarged and your nails to curve downward.

Among people whose nail clubbing is caused by cancers in the chest, about 80 percent of cases are linked to lung cancer. Other types of growths in the chest can also cause clubbing.

Nail clubbing can occur in people who have heart disease, digestive diseases, infections, and other types of cancer. Some people with nail clubbing will also develop a condition called hypertrophic osteoarthropathy, which includes joint pain and swelling along with changes in the bones.

Facial Swelling

Facial swelling is an uncommon symptom that can occur if cancer in the chest, including lung metastases, presses on or blocks the superior vena cava — a large vein that carries blood from the head, neck, and upper chest back to the heart. This blockage can lead to superior vena cava syndrome, which can be serious and requires prompt medical attention.

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