Abstract
Trials SWOG 8949 and EORTC 30947 had the same eligibility criteria and established the role of cytoreductive nephrectomy for metastatic renal cell carcinoma. The more recently published CARMENA trial calls into question the need for cytoreductive nephrectomy. A systematic comparison of CARMENA and SWOG 8949 suggests that cytoreductive nephrectomy may be beneficial for patients receiving immunotherapy but not targeted therapy. The approval of immune checkpoint inhibitors for previously untreated metastatic renal cell carcinoma underlines the need for another randomized phase 3 trial of cytoreductive nephrectomy for patients receiving powerful modern immunotherapies.