The molecular pathogenesis of penile carcinoma-current developments and understanding

Abstract

Penile squamous cell carcinoma is a rare malignancy with various distinct histological subtypes, each with distinct appearances, histotypic specific associations with human papillomavirus (HPV) and clinical behaviour. Despite a wealth of pathological knowledge, there still remains a limited understanding of the fundamental molecular drivers that govern penile carcinogenesis with their underlying prognostic and therapeutic importance. However, recent work has improved our fundamental understanding of the molecular pathogenesis of penile cancer: commonly divided into the HPV-dependent and HPV-independent pathways. This review aims to summarise current developments in the histopathology and the molecular pathogenesis of penile cancer, with the advent of next-generation sequencing, and the opportunities for the targeting of molecular drivers of metastatic disease.

Keywords: Carcinogenesis; Genetics; Histotype; Human papillomavirus; Penile intraepithelial neoplasia; Penile squamous cell carcinoma.