How is penile cancer caused?

Penile cancer is a malignant disease of the male body, mainly caused by malignant changes in the glans penis. There are many causes of penile cancer in men, which may be closely related to the foreskin being too long. Patients with penile cancer need to receive timely treatment, pay more attention to the cleanliness of the penile area, and maintain a good attitude.

How is penile cancer caused?

Penile cancer is a malignant tumor originating from the glans penis, coronal sulcus, inner lining of the foreskin, and penile skin. It is the most common malignant tumor of the penis, accounting for more than 90% of penile tumors. The most common pathological type is penile squamous cell carcinoma, accounting for about 95% of penile cancer. Therefore, penile cancer has almost become a synonym for penile squamous cell carcinoma, causing people to ignore the existence of other types of penile cancer. The WHO histological classification of penile malignant epithelial tumors divides the pathological types of penile cancer into penile squamous cell carcinoma, Merkel cell carcinoma, neuroendocrine small cell carcinoma, sebaceous gland carcinoma, clear cell carcinoma and basal cell carcinoma. Penile Bowen's disease and penile Paget's disease are classified as precancerous lesions. In fact, these two diseases are also special types of penile cancer. Before the 1950s, penile cancer was one of the most common malignant tumors of the male urogenital system in my country. With the continuous improvement of people's health conditions, the incidence of penile cancer has dropped rapidly, especially after the reform and opening up, the decline has been more obvious, and penile cancer has become a rare tumor.

Causes

The exact cause of penile cancer is still unclear. It is generally recognized that it is closely related to phimosis and prepuce. Smegma and chronic inflammatory stimulation are important causes of penile cancer. A large number of research results show that circumcision in infants and young children can prevent the occurrence of penile cancer, while circumcision in childhood or adulthood cannot reduce the incidence of penile cancer. Therefore, patients with phimosis should undergo surgical treatment as soon as possible. For people with prepuce, it is most important to keep the foreskin clean, which can also reduce the incidence of penile cancer. The vast majority of penile cancer patients seen in clinical practice now have phimosis. In addition, other causes of penile cancer include penile lichen sclerosus, warts, emphysema, human papillomavirus infection, and incomplete circumcision. Therefore, patients with the above diseases should also be treated as soon as possible.

Clinical manifestations

Penile cancer often starts on the mucous membrane of the glans penis, coronal sulcus and inner foreskin. For patients with phimosis, the early stage of the lesion is not easy to be found. Nodules or lumps can be felt in the foreskin, which gradually increase in size and can penetrate the foreskin to expose the cancer. Purulent or bloody secretions often flow out of the foreskin opening. Patients whose foreskin can be everted to expose the glans penis will show papules, papillary or flat protrusions, warts or cauliflower-like plaques, ulcers at the lesion site. The lesion gradually increases in size and is often accompanied by foul-smelling secretions on the surface. Penile cancer rarely occurs in the body of the penis. Due to the associated infection, patients with penile cancer often have unilateral or bilateral inguinal lymph node enlargement. About 50% of patients with enlarged lymph nodes are pathologically confirmed to have lymph node metastasis.