Cancer Research Uk has released figures showing that cases have risen to more than 9,000, up from 3,000 in 1975.This makes kidney cancer the eighth most common cancer in the UK.
The charity says that some of this increase could be due to the greater use of imaging techniques helping to diagnose more kidney tumours.
This taken into account, rising obesity levels are also a factor. After smoking, obesity is one of the main risk factors for kidney cancer, with research suggesting it increases the risk by 70%.
Figures show that in 2009 there were 9,286 new cases of kidney cancer in the UK. 5,706 in men and 3,580 in women. This represents about 19 new kidney cancer cases for every 100,000 men in the UK and more than 11 new cases for every 100,000 women.
Kidney cancer is now the sixth most common cancer in men and the ninth most common cancer in women.