Last updated: 17-Oct-2026
Dr Swati Shah
MS, DrNB (Surgical Oncology)
Urology Cancer Surgeon
Apollo Hospital, Bhat, Gandhinagar · Gota OPD, Ahmedabad · 18 years of experience
★★★★★ 4.99 from 85 Google reviews (Gota clinic) · 5.0 from 28 (Apollo, Bhat)
IN SHORT
After nephroureterectomy, most of the hospital recovery happens within the first week. The longer tasks come later: protecting the one kidney left and checking the bladder.
This cancer can come back inside the bladder, even after the kidney and ureter are removed. So bladder camera checks are part of the treatment, for life.
One dose of chemotherapy is placed into the bladder within days of surgery, once the bladder closure is sound. It lowers the chance of a bladder tumour.
This page is one part of a larger guide. For how ureter and renal pelvis cancer is treated, start with our nephroureterectomy guide. For the wider picture of kidney cancer surgery, see our kidney cancer surgery guide.
Cancer of the ureter or the kidney’s drainage lining is treated in one of two ways. The choice depends on whether the cancer is low risk or high risk. Recovery differs a lot between the two.
| Point | Nephroureterectomy | Kidney-sparing treatment |
|---|---|---|
| What is removed | The kidney, the whole ureter and a small cuff of the bladder. | Only the tumour, by laser through a thin camera, or a short segment of ureter. |
| Kidney afterwards | One kidney is left. Kidney function falls and stays lower. | Both kidneys stay. |
| Early follow-up | Bladder chemotherapy dose, then bladder checks. | A second-look camera test of the ureter within eight weeks. |
| Long-term | Bladder and scan checks for life. | Repeated camera tests of the ureter under anaesthesia, for life. |
Kidney-sparing treatment carries a real chance of the cancer coming back. Some people later need the full operation anyway.
You go home when every one of these is met. No fever for a day. You are eating, passing wind or stool, and walking on your own. Pain is controlled with tablets.
Your new kidney-function result is written on the discharge card. It becomes the baseline that every later kidney test is compared against.
The urine tube is out and you pass urine, or a date for removal is written down. The histology talk, the first bladder check and, if needed, the cancer physician visit are booked before you leave.
Every complication is graded and recorded. These are the main ones and the first response to each.
| What is noticed | What it may mean | What is done |
|---|---|---|
| Less urine, kidney test rising, days one to three. | Strain on the one kidney left. | Harmful medicines and anti-inflammatory painkillers are stopped. Ultrasound, fluids, kidney physician the same day. |
| Clear, watery fluid in the drain. | Urine leak from the bladder closure. | The urine tube and drain stay in. A bladder X-ray with contrast is done. |
| Milky drain fluid after eating starts. | Lymph fluid leak after node removal. | Low-fat diet. The drain stays until it settles. |
| Fever and a fast pulse, days three to seven. | A fluid collection, urine pocket or bowel injury. | Nothing by mouth, a CT scan, and the surgeon is called at once. |
| Left shoulder-tip pain and falling blood count after left-sided surgery. | Bleeding from the spleen. | Urgent CT and blood ready. The surgeon sees you now. |
| Swollen belly and vomiting after food. | Slow bowel or a blockage. | A tube to empty the stomach. CT if it does not settle in two days. |
Other risks are named before consent, without figures here. They include bleeding needing blood, wound infection, clots in the legs or lungs, chest infection and heart strain. A hernia at the cut, a pocket of lymph fluid, a change from keyhole or robotic to open, a stay in intensive care, a second operation and a small risk to life are also named.
After the kidney is removed, kidney function falls and does not return to the old level. This is a certainty of the operation, not a risk. If the remaining kidney fails one day, dialysis is needed.
Protecting the one kidney left is now a lifelong job. Blood pressure, diabetes, painkillers and scan dyes all matter more than before.
When the tumour has grown deep into the wall, or into nodes, chemotherapy is advised after surgery. It should start within about three months of the operation.
The fall in kidney function can rule out the stronger drug, cisplatin. This is why your kidney number is measured before surgery and shared with the cancer physician early. Their appointment is booked before you leave hospital.
Checks are lifelong, because this cancer can come back late. A high-grade or deeper tumour needs closer checks than a low-grade one.
| When | What is checked |
|---|---|
| At two weeks. | Wound, histology talk, kidney test. Gene test result on the tumour, and a genetics referral if needed. |
| At three months. | Bladder camera test, urine cancer-cell test and kidney test. A CT urogram if high risk. |
| High risk, first two years. | Bladder camera test every three months. A CT scan every six months. |
| High risk, years two to five. | Bladder camera test every six months. A CT urogram once a year. |
| Low risk. | Bladder camera test at three and nine months, then yearly. A CT urogram yearly. |
| Every year, for life. | Bladder camera test, urine test, a scan and a kidney test. |
After kidney-sparing treatment, the second-look ureter camera test comes within eight weeks. Camera tests of the bladder and ureter, CT and urine tests then follow at three and six months, every six months for two years, and yearly for life.
This cancer starts in the lining that runs from the kidney to the bladder. It can come back in the bladder, so the bladder is checked for life.
It is a single dose placed into the bladder through a tube, within days of surgery. It lowers the chance of a bladder tumour.
Most people do not. Kidney function falls after surgery, but one kidney usually copes. Dialysis is needed only if the remaining kidney fails.
A small cuff of the bladder is removed and the bladder is closed. The tube lets that closure heal.
Avoid anti-inflammatory painkillers, which can harm the one kidney left. Ask your doctor before any new medicine.
The operation itself is explained on the radical nephroureterectomy page. Early signs and the first tests are on the ureter and renal pelvis cancer signs page. For questions after discharge, call +91-63590-11009. Gota OPD, Gota, Ahmedabad. The wider picture of kidney cancer surgery is in the kidney cancer surgery guide.
Shah’s Gastro, Cancer & Robotic Surgery Centre
Dr Swati Shah — MS, DrNB (Surgical Oncology) · Urology Cancer Surgeon
Consultation: Gota OPD, Gota, Ahmedabad. Surgery: Apollo Hospital, Bhat, Gandhinagar.
Gota OPD — Gota, Ahmedabad, Gujarat
Apollo Hospital, Bhat, Gandhinagar — Apollo Hospital International Limited, Plot No. 1 A, GIDC Bhat Industrial Estate, Bhat, Gandhinagar, Gujarat
Call: +91-63590-11009 · WhatsApp: +91-63590-11009
Recovering from surgery for ureter or renal pelvis cancer, or planning it? Send the histology and kidney function reports ahead on WhatsApp, so the visit starts with them read. Any change in plan is decided at the consultation, after examination. Call +91-63590-11009 Send your reports before the visit
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