Living with renal cell carcinoma (RCC) — the most common type of kidney cancer — can be tough both physically and emotionally. Symptoms such as fatigue, pain, unwanted weight loss, and night sweats can significantly affect your quality of life. Cancer treatment side effects can also take a toll on your physical and mental well-being.

If your RCC — sometimes called renal cell or kidney cancer — is affecting your ability to enjoy yourself or carry out daily tasks, it’s important to talk to your doctor about steps you can take to feel your best. Here are some tips for living well with RCC that you can discuss further with your oncology or urology healthcare team.

1. Practice Self-Care

Self-care is an essential part of managing the discomfort you may be experiencing with RCC. It doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive — it’s about prioritizing your needs, care, and comfort so you can feel as well as possible. What that looks like can vary from person to person. It’s important to give yourself the time and space to rest, recover, and refresh your mind and body.

Here are some ways you can practice self-care, depending on what works best for you:

• Have a massage or take a long bath.
• Meditate.
• Take quiet time by yourself.
• Get enough sleep.
• Spend quality time with loved ones or friends.
• Set aside time for the activities you enjoy, such as reading, listening to music, or a hobby.
• Exercise, if possible, or do some light physical activity such as walking or gardening.

If you need help with exercise that is appropriate for your particular condition, your doctor can give you a referral for a physical therapist.

2. Eat Healthy

Eating a well-balanced diet with lots of fruits and vegetables can support your overall health, help preserve your strength, and reduce your risk of infection. Eating healthy foods and getting enough calories to stay at a good weight is especially important during treatment that can weaken your immune system.

Your doctor can advise you on specific foods you may need to avoid due to your kidney function. Talk to your doctor to be sure you’re getting the right amount of protein. Always discuss dietary supplements, including vitamins and minerals, with your doctor before trying them. Some supplements may interfere with cancer treatment.

Your cancer care team can refer you to a registered dietitian who can help you plan a healthy diet that’s suitable for you.

3. Work With Your Healthcare Team To Manage Treatment Side Effects

Before considering a new treatment for your RCC, make sure to discuss potential side effects with your oncologist, nephrologist, or urologist. Every treatment — including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiation therapy — has a risk of side effects, and they can often be effectively managed. Let your doctor know if you’re having unpleasant side effects. Keeping a journal can help you track side effects — when they happen, what you’re doing, and the time of day.

Always attend follow-up appointments to ensure that your doctor knows if you’re having side effects or any new or worsening symptoms. Don’t make changes to your treatment plan without medical advice. If you’re not satisfied with your current treatment plan due to side effects or any other reason, talk to your doctor about your treatment options.

4. Consider Palliative Care

Palliative care is designed to help relieve the stress and symptoms of serious diseases such as RCC, to improve your quality of life. It focuses on relieving symptoms and improving quality of life at any stage of illness, not just at the end of life. Palliative care is available for people of all ages with any stage of RCC. Palliative care teams can help address issues such as pain, sleep disturbances, and emotional distress that you may be experiencing with RCC.

Whether or not you’re currently undergoing treatment, palliative care can often help people with cancer better manage their symptoms. If you’d like to learn more about palliative care, talk to your doctor.

5. Participate in a Support Group

Living with RCC can feel isolating. It’s important to know you’re not alone with your kidney cancer diagnosis. By joining a support group, either in-person or online, you can connect with others who understand the challenges of living with RCC.

Support groups can provide numerous benefits, such as:

• Helping you feel less isolated or anxious and providing hope
• Giving you an outlet for freely expressing your feelings
• Learning how others with RCC cope
• Offering resources, information, and practical issues related to RCC, such as new cancer research or clinical trials
• Getting tips on how to communicate more effectively with your doctor and tips on how to cope with treatment side effects
• Making new friends and connecting with people who get what you’re going through

Some support groups invite family members to participate, which can help your loved ones and caregivers better understand your experience.

6. Manage Your Stress

There are many reasons why you may be experiencing stress with RCC. Seemingly endless medical appointments, uncertainty about the future, fear of metastasis (cancer spreading), financial worries, concerns about family, pain, and discomfort — these can lead to stress, anxiety, or depression in people with RCC. About a quarter of people with RCC already have advanced RCC (metastatic RCC) when they’re first diagnosed, which can cause a lot of stress and anxiety.

Stress management helps improve your state of mind and your physical health because stress can weaken the immune system. You might want to try:

• Deep breathing exercises
• Mindfulness training
• Physical activity, such as exercise or yoga and pilates

Mindfulness training includes a range of practices, such as meditation, yoga and tai chi, and writing in a journal. These types of practices help clear the mind and reduce negative thoughts. Mindfulness has been found to have health benefits for people with cancer, including reducing symptoms of chemotherapy such as fatigue, pain, and nausea, and improving outcomes after cancer surgery.

If you feel you can’t manage your stress, anxiety, or depression on your own, your doctor can give you a referral for mental health counseling. It’s important to talk openly with your doctor about any mental health concerns.

7. Set Boundaries and Ask for Help When You Need It

It’s easy to overdo it when you’re living with symptoms of RCC or side effects of treatment. Sometimes, you need to stand up for yourself and set clear boundaries with the people in your life. That may mean declining a social invitation or canceling plans. When making plans, inform your family and friends that your energy levels can be unpredictable, and you may need to cancel or reschedule.

Ask for help if you need it, whether it’s a ride to your cancer center, assistance with a meal, or help with chores. Loved ones and friends want to help, but may need guidance from you on what kind of help is best. If you live on your own, you may need to be more proactive about reaching out for help. This could include asking friends, family, neighbors, or community services for support, especially when you’re having treatment side effects or need help at home.

There are different ways to ask for help. You may ask informally as tasks come up. Some people set up websites to coordinate tasks among those who want to help you, or you could also ask a friend or loved one to set up this type of website. Some people invite family members and close friends to gather together to discuss specific ways to be helpful.

If loved ones and friends aren’t available to help, you can ask your healthcare team to connect you with a social worker or a nurse navigator. These professionals can help you with resources, such as volunteers or transportation services, to help you with activities and tasks you find difficult.

Talk With Others Who Understand

On MyKidneyCancerTeam, the social network for people with kidney cancer and their loved ones, members come together to ask questions, give advice, and share their stories with others who understand life with kidney cancer.

Do you have tips for living well with renal cell carcinoma? What has helped you feel your best while living with RCC? Share your experiences in the comments below, or start a conversation by posting on your Activities page.