A new study has suggested that removing a kidney does not seem to prolong the life of patients aged 75 and above suffering with kidney cancer that has not spread.

However, they suffer from other medical problems, which require due cancer-related care, such as observation or treatments that spare the non-cancerous parts of their kidneys.

The data reveals that kidney cancer cases have registered a rise over the past 10 years, especially among older people, and doctors are in a bid to grab the best way to treat what they call localized cancer in this age group.

"Current research is indicating over-treatment of localized renal tumors, and our data suggest that active surveillance is a reasonable strategy and one that is greatly under-utilized in the elderly population," the authors wrote.

As a part of the new study, Dr. Steve Campbell of the Cleveland Clinic along with his colleagues examined the medical records of 537 people with localized kidney tumors that were 7cm in diameter and were diagnosed at age 75 years or older.

It is reported that twenty per cent of these patients were closely observed, 53 per cent had kidney-sparing surgery, and 27 per cent were given a nephrectomy.

Moreover, during the next four years, 28 percent of the overall groups were reported to have died; however, just 4 percent of the deaths were because of progression of their cancer.