RESULTS
Of the 457 patients included in the study, 290 (63.5%) were male and 167 (36.5%) were female. The mean age of the patients was 59.68±12.54 (19-86). A renal mass was detected incidentally in 221 (48.4%) patients. It was observed that 184 (40.2%) patients applied with the complaint of pain, 52 (11.4%) patients applied with the complaint of hematuria and were operated due to the detection of a mass in the kidney. The mean tumor size in preoperative imaging methods was calculated as 59.64±32.48 mm (10-180). Distant metastasis was detected in 39 (8.5%) patients.The time elapsed between imaging and operation was 45.79±41.89 days (1-240). Open partial nephrectomy was performed in 135 (29.5%) patients, open radical nephrectomy in 157 (34.4%) patients, laparoscopic partial nephrectomy in 31 (6.8%) patients, and laparoscopic radical nephrectomy in 134 (29.3%) patients. Tumor pathologies were as following: clear cell RCC in 294 (64.3%) patients, papillary RCC in 56 (12.3%) patients, chromophobic RCC in 39 (8.5%) patients, and other types in 68 (14.9%) patients. Tumor size of pathological specimens was 58.36±33.25 mm (10-200). Staging was as follows: 249 (54.5%) patients were diagnosed as stage 1, 78 (17.1%) patients as stage 2, 75 (16.4%) patients as stage 3, and 55 (12%) patients as stage 4 kidney tumors. Table 1 shows the socio-demographic characteristics of the patients included in the study.
Among all patients, 160 (35.01%) were in group 1 (operated during 1-year period amid COVID-19) and 297 (64.99%) were in group 2 (operated during period of 1-year before COVID-19). There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of mean age (59.05±11.81 years and 60.02±12.92, respectively) (p=0.31). Twenty-three (14.4%) patients who applied with the complaint of hematuria were in group 1 and 29 (9.8%) were in group 2. Although there was no statistical difference, the percentage of applications due to hematuria during the COVID period increased compared to the pre-COVID period. In the preoperative imaging, tumor size was 58.21±33.16 mm in group 1 and 60.41±32.13 mm in group 2, and there was no significant difference between the two groups (p=0.21). Preoperative evaluation in terms of metastasis showed that it was detected in 21 (13.1%) patients in group 1 and in 18 (6.1%) patients in group 2, and this difference between the groups was significant (p=0.01). There was a significant difference between the groups in terms of time between imaging and operation (55.98±51.02 days vs 40.30±34.9 days, respectively) (p=0.01). However, no significant difference was found between the two groups in terms of the type of performed surgery (p=0.13). Moreover, no statistical difference was found between the groups in terms of the tumor sizes measured in the pathology specimens (57.86±31.52 mm vs 58.64±34.21 mm) (p=0.73). Lastly, no significant difference was found between the groups in terms of pathological stage (p=0.16). Table 2 compares the data of operations performed for RCC in the 1-year period during and pre-COVID-19.