Follow-up of clear cell renal cell carcinoma following adjuvant pembrolizumab is a relatively new clinical problem that is influenced by immune pressure and heterogeneous resistance biology. Adjuvant anti-PD-1 treatment has revolutioniz ed postoperative treatment by improving disease-free survival and the overall survival rate but a significant proportion of patients develop recurrence with unique timing, and clinical and molecular pattern, which has important implications. This review attempts to summariz e and explain the available data on recurrence phenotypes, including timing, disease burden, and molecular determinants and then elucidates how these factors influence the choice of subsequent treatment strategies. Early recurrence may suggest primary immune resistance, supporting a mechanism switch towards vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-targeted or hypoxia-inducible factor-2α (HIF-2α)-targeted therapy, although this interpretat ion remains a hypothesis rather than an established mechanistic truth. Conversely, late recurrence may be associated with residual immunological sensitiv ity, potentially permitting immune checkpoint inhibitors-tyrosine kinase inhibitors combinations or immunotherapy rechallenge in carefully selected patients. The status of focal therapy in the oligometastatic relapse, emerging treatment trends in the real world, and recommendations provided by the modern global guidelines are addressed. In the setting where there are no prospective trials in the post-adjuvant setting, a biologically informed, mechanism-based approach is required to streamline sequencing strategies in this unique and more frequently observed population of patients.
Journal of kidney cancer and VHL. 2026 Jul 03*** epublish ***
Goutham Sunny, Shrikanth Ravichandran, Abinash Patnaik, Rajan Yadav
Department of Medical and Pediatric Oncology, Gujarat Cancer and Research Centre, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India., Department of Medical Oncology, HCG Cancer Centre, Hubli, Karnataka, India.