How is male urethral cancer treated?

Male urethral cancer is a serious threat to male reproductive health. It is a malignant tumor, so it should be treated with scientific methods. Common treatments include surgery, tumor removal, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy.

1. Primary urethral tumors are clinically rare, and malignant tumors include carcinoma, sarcoma, melanoma, etc. There are many pathological types of urethral cancer, including squamous carcinoma, transitional cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma, with squamous carcinoma being the most common. Urethral cancer with urethral stenosis is more common in the bulbar urethra. There is no racial difference in male urethral cancer. The tissue type of primary male urethral cancer varies according to its origin site, with 60% of the occurrence sites located in the bulbar urethra, 30% in the penile urethra, and 10% in the prostatic urethra. The tissue type is squamous carcinoma accounting for 80%, and transitional epithelial carcinoma accounting for 15%. Adenocarcinoma and undifferentiated carcinoma originate from the bulbourethral glands or Littre glands, accounting for only 5%. The age of onset of this disease ranges from 13 to 91 years old, and the vast majority are over 50 years old. Symptoms such as urethral bleeding, frequent urination, urgency, and pain when urinating may occur in the early stages. As the tumor grows, it can also cause difficulty in urination. It is difficult to treat and has a poor prognosis.

2. Treatment

1. Choice of treatment method

(1) The basic principle of surgical treatment is to surgically remove the tumor, and the extent depends on the degree of tumor invasion, location and grade of the tumor. Anterior urethral surgery is easier and has better postoperative effects.

(2) Chemotherapy is more effective for metastatic tumors and is currently mainly used as an adjuvant treatment after surgery or radiotherapy for locally advanced urethral cancer.

(3) Radiotherapy Radiotherapy should be limited to patients in the early stages and those who are unwilling to undergo surgical treatment, as palliative treatment or adjuvant treatment after surgery.

2. Surgical treatment options

(1) Distal urethral cancer can be treated by transurethral resection, local excision, and radical resection.

(2) Treatment of bulbar urethral cancer Most bulbar urethral tumors are already extensively expanded at the time of diagnosis and should be treated with extensive resection.

(3) Treatment of prostatic urethral cancer is rare. It can be transitional cell carcinoma or adenocarcinoma. A clear diagnosis depends on urethral prostate biopsy. Superficial prostatic urethral tumors can be treated with transurethral resection of the prostate.

(4) The management of residual urethra after cystectomy should include regular urethral washing fluid cytology examination or even biopsy every 3 to 4 months, with a total follow-up of 5 years.