Metastatic tumors to the penis: a report of 17 cases and review of the literature

Abstract

This study presents clinicopathologic and outcome features of 17 patients with metastatic tumor to the penis. Primary sites and histological types were as follows: 6 urothelial carcinomas of urinary bladder, 4 prostatic carcinomas (2 adenocarcinomas and 2 adenosquamous carcinomas), 2 colorectal adenocarcinomas, 2 pulmonary carcinomas (1 squamous cell carcinoma and 1 small cell carcinoma), 1 squamous cell carcinoma of base of the tongue, 1 cutaneous malignant melanoma, and 1 acute myeloid leukemia. Literature review revealed similar distribution of organ sites in 437 cases. Most of our tumors were metachronous. Interval between primary and penile metastasis ranged from 3 to 60 months (mean 16 months). Most of the patients presented with a penile mass. Priapism was observed in 4 patients. The shaft was the commonest anatomical site involved (12 cases). Tumor emboli were usually found in the erectile tissues (14 cases), mainly corpora cavernosa. A total of 14 patients died of disseminated disease. Time interval between primary tumor and penile metastasis ranged from 3 to 60 months (mean 19 months) and between diagnosis of penile metastasis and death ranged from 0.25 to 18 months (mean 6 months), significantly shorter (P = .0058). Patients presented a median survival of 18 months from primary treatment and 5 months after diagnosis of penile metastasis. None of the patients who died of disseminated cancer lived more than 18 months after pathological diagnosis. Clinical evidence of penile involvement in a patient with a known malignancy is an ominous sign and should alert the clinicians to the dismal prognosis.