肾细胞癌（RCC）是最常见的惡性肾脏肿瘤。它不是单一实体，而是一种涵盖几种不同肿瘤类型的大伞。最普遍和临床意义最重大的RCC亚型是透明细胞癌，由具有空细胞质的细胞组成。这些肿瘤细胞携带VHL基因的双等位基因缺失，导致假性缺氧状态，促进血管生成和细胞增殖。乳头状RCC和嫌色细胞癌也是常见的亚型之一，其中前者呈乳头状外观，拥有cMET突变。后者的特点是嗜酸性肿瘤细胞和多个染色体缺失。这些亚型占成人肾癌的90-95%。此外，也可以发现具有独特免疫组织化学特征、遗传异常或特定临床过程的罕见肿瘤亚型。目前，RCC亚型仅具有预后意义，没有任何与亚型相关的治疗方法。然而，将来可能会出现与组织学亚型相关的治疗方法，因此，应根据目前的建议进行RCC的诊断。

Renal cell carcinoma (RCC) is the most common malignant kidney tumor. It is not a single entity but an umbrella term for several distinct tumor types. The most prevalent and clinically significant subtype of RCC is clear cell carcinoma, which consists of cells with empty cytoplasm. These tumor cells harbor biallelic loss of the VHL gene, resulting in a pseudohypoxic state that promotes angiogenesis and cellular proliferation. Papillary RCC and chromophobe carcinoma are also common subtypes, with the former displaying a papillary appearance and cMET mutation. The latter is characterized by eosinophilic tumor cells and multiple chromosomal losses. These subtypes are responsible for 90-95% of all kidney cancers in adults. Additionally, rare tumor subtypes with unique immunohistochemical features, genetic abnormalities, or a specific clinical course may be identified. Currently, the RCC subtype only holds prognostic significance, and no treatment is associated with any subtype. However, therapies associated with histological subtypes may emerge in the future, and thus, the diagnosis of RCCs should be made following current recommendations.