Renal cancer articles from across Nature Portfolio

Long considered undruggable, hypoxia-inducible factor 2α (HIF2α) has now been validated as a therapeutic target in several cancers. This Review discusses the structural basis for HIF2α druggability, the clinical results to date and key challenges, including toxicities and the need for predictive biomarkers, as well as emerging targeting modalities and combination strategies that might enhance efficacy, overcome resistance and broaden indications for HIF2 inhibition.

Here the authors reveal a large-scale multi-ancestry genome-wide association study (GWAS) that identifies 11 new risk loci for kidney cancer, including one specific to Chinese populations.

The approval of pembrolizumab as adjuvant immunotherapy for patients with clear cell renal cell carcinoma meeting the KEYNOTE-564 criteria set new standards and recalibrated future research and clinical needs. Yet, clinical decisions are becoming increasingly nuanced. Achieving clarity in this setting requires a cultural shift aimed at balancing evidence and uncertainty. As a community we should consider this tension as an opportunity to improve on value for patients.

Lyons et al. explored the rules of specificity and function for condensates formed by oncogenic fusion proteins, and identified a common molecular signature in these oncoproteins that compartmentalizes RNA polymerase II to confer an increase in gene activation and consequent cancer phenotypes.

The first study of personalized cancer vaccines for renal cell carcinoma with breakthrough results in the adjuvant setting has been published, showing a 100% efficacy rate and negligible toxic effects. However, important questions remain concerning long-term effectiveness.