Carcinoma of the male urethra

The role of inguinal lymph node dissection in men with urethral squamous cell carcinoma

INTRODUCTION

Urethral squamous cell cancer is a rare disease with limited clinical recommendations regarding management of the inguinal lymph nodes. Despite the similarities to penile cancer in terms of squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) histology and lymphatic drainage, there is not enough evidence to recommend for or against a prophylactic inguinal lymph node dissection (ILND) in patients with clinically negative groins and a primary tumor stage of T1b or higher. The objective of the study was to identify the rate of prophylactic inguinal lymph node dissection, node positive rate, and overall survival in patients with clinical T1 to T4 stage. The patients were separated into clinical N stage and the rates of node positivity were compared. We hypothesize that the node positivity rate would be similar to that observed in penile cancer of similar clinical T and N stage and provide evidence for prophylactic inguinal lymph node dissection in urethral squamous cancer. We also sought to determine the value of ILND in clinically node positive (cN+) and clinically node negative (cN-) patients.

METHODS

The National Cancer Database was queried for all cases of primary urethral cancer in men from 2004 to 2014. Patients with other cancer diagnoses, metastasis, nonsquamous histology, female patients, and patients with a history of radiation therapy were excluded. Male patients with urethral squamous cell cancer of the anterior urethra with T1 or higher T stage were included in this study. All-cause mortality was compared using multivariable Cox regression controlling for covariates.

RESULTS

The study included 725 men with urethral SCC with T1 or higher clinical T stage. The median age was 63 years (33-83 interquartile range). Of the 725 men, 536 men did not receive an ILND and 189 (26%) underwent ILND. Patients who received LND had significantly higher clinical T and clinical N stage. There was no difference in age, sex, or histology between those with ILND versus no ILND. In patients with T1 to T4 and clinical N0, the ILND rate was 21.8% (89/396). The lymph node positive rate in patients with N0 and T1 to T4 primary tumor was 9%. In patients with clinically node positive disease (N1/N2), the overall ILND rate was 76%. The lymph node positive rate for patients with clinical nodal disease was 84%. On multivariable analysis cox regression, lymph node positivity was associated with worse overall survival when controlling for T stage, clinical N stage, and age (HR 1.56, 95% 1.3-1.9, P = 0.000). On multivariable analysis after controlling for T stage, sex, and age, having an ILND was associated with improved OS in patients with clinical N1 or N2 disease (HR 0.46, 95% 0.28-0.78 P = 0.002).

CONCLUSION

The node positivity rate in patients with T1 to T4 and N0 is 9%, much lower than reported in penile cancer with a high-risk primary tumor but clinically negative groins. This argues against routine prophylactic inguinal ILND in patients with urethral SCC who are clinically N0, perhaps suggesting different biological behavior of urethral SCC compared to penile SCC. Performing a lymph node dissection in patients with clinically N1 or N2 disease is associated with improved OS.

Therapy and prognosis for male anterior urethral carcinoma: an update

OBJECTIVE

The scarcity of reports evaluating the effect of current treatment strategies for male urethral carcinoma has prompted a review of our recent experience. Since our last report (1980), we have seen 23 patients with this disease.

METHODS

We performed a retrospective chart review of 23 patients seen in our institution between 1979 and 1990 with this type of cancer.

RESULTS

Fifty-two percent of our patients are alive without evidence of disease, after a mean follow-up of fifty months (range, 5 to 156 months). Treatment analysis indicates that distal urethrectomy and partial penectomy are adequate in controlling local disease for tumors arising in the fossa navicularis and penile urethra, respectively, and that en bloc excision of the penis, scrotum, prostate, and bladder together with resection of the inferior pubic rami, using myocutaneous flaps to cover the surgical defect, can provide long-term disease-free survival for patients whose tumor originates in the bulbomembranous urethra. Use of cisplatin-based chemotherapy resulted in a prolonged survival for patients who presented with metastatic disease.

CONCLUSIONS

We conclude that the prognosis for patients with urethral carcinoma has improved, and some of the patients are having a prolonged disease-free survival due, in part, to more effective local and regional control and improved chemotherapy.

Phallic reconstruction during exenterative surgery for invasive urethral carcinoma

A technique is described for phallic reconstruction after wide surgical excision of squamous cell carcinoma of the bulbomembranous urethra. Two cases in which this technique was used are presented with followup information at 9 and 12 months.

Primary carcinoma of the distal male urethra: a case treated with lymphadenectomy and interstitial radiation therapy

We report a case of primary squamous cell carcinoma of the distal male urethra with a single inguinal node metastasis. Treatment consisted of unilateral pelvic and inguinal lymphadenectomy, and a combined course of external beam and interstitial radiation therapy to the distal urethra and penis by the Henschke modification of the Paris technique.

Papillary adenocarcinoma of the male urethra. Case report and review of the literature

Mucinous papillary adenocarcinoma of the bulbous urethra developed in a 40-year-old man with congenital stricture. The tumor appeared as a localized polypoid exophytic mass without evidence of submucosal invasion (Stage 0). The tumor was determined not to be of prostatic origin clinically and by absence of immunoperoxidase staining for prostatic acid phosphatase, prostate specific antigen, and carcinoembryonic antigen. Surgical resection of the urethra revealed extensive squamous and glandular metaplasia (urethritis glandularis) in association with the neoplasm. The mucosa displayed a spectrum of epithelial changes varying from dysplasia to carcinoma in situ, in confirmation of the urethral origin of the tumor. These observations emphasize the close association of metaplastic proliferative lesions and malignancy in the lower urinary tract.

Carcinoma of deep male urethra

Carcinoma of the deep male urethra is a rare disease. Conservative measures yielding dismal outcomes were standard until 1957, with the report of an 80 per cent five-year survival rate after radical surgery. To assess the value of this surgery, we reviewed all cases of carcinoma of the deep male urethra managed at UCLA Medical Center and its affiliated hospitals between 1952 and 1980. Of the patients managed with radical surgery, 1 died of a myocardial infarction between staged surgical procedures, and 5 died of their disease between twelve and fifty-two months postoperatively (mean survival, 26 months). There were 2 long-term disease-free survivors, yielding a survival rate of 25 per cent. We have also compiled the results of all major series dealing with deep urethral carcinoma published subsequent to the 1957 report. This review of the literature supports the concept that radical extirpative surgery is mandatory in the management of carcinoma of the deep male urethra.

Primary carcinoma of male urethra

Carcinoma of the male urethra is infrequent. To date approximately 600 cases have been reported. We reviewed 16 cases of carcinoma of the male urethra seen at the University of Tennessee and the Memphis Veterans Administration Hospital. The mean patient age was sixty-three years (range 38 to 84). The most common presentation was a palpable mass followed by symptoms of urinary obstruction. Five urethral carcinomas arose distal to the suspensory ligament of the penis while 11 were of bulbar or bulbomembranous origin. The histology was squamous cell carcinoma in 8 patients (50%), mixed squamous and transitional cell carcinoma in 5 (31%), transitional cell carcinoma in 2 (13%), and adenocarcinoma in 1 (6%). The mean patient survival was fifteen months following diagnosis of a proximal urethral tumor and seventy-seven months for tumors arising distally. Neoplasms of the distal urethra can be surgically managed successfully even if regional lymph nodes are involved. The prognosis for proximal urethra tumors remains poor and is best treated by a combination of surgery and radiotherapy.

Primary squamous cell carcinoma of anterior male urethra

Primary squamous cell carcinoma of the anterior male urethra, which accounts for most carcinomas in that site, is a rare lesion. Ten cases having occurred in the last ten years were divided into distal and proximal anterior urethral lesions. Analysis of these cases confirms the need for a high index of suspicion for the lesion in patients who have chronic stricture disease; surgical treatment as the primary therapeutic modality; the fact that distal lesions generally have a better prognosis than proximal lesions, thus may sometimes be treated more conservatively; and the fact that adenopathy (especially of the pelvic nodes) usually heralds a poorer prognosis. Retrograde urethrography, endoscopy with biopsy, and bimanual examination are all essential for proper diagnosis, staging, and management.

Transitional cell carcinoma of the fossa navicularis of the male urethra

We report a case of transitional cell carcinoma arising in the fossa navicularis, a portion of the male urethra ordinarily lined by squamous epithelium. This is the third reported case of transitional cell carcinoma of the distal urethra. The neoplasm metastasized to superficial inguinal lymph nodes.

An adenosquamous carcinoma of the male urethra with hypercalcemia

A case of primary adenosquamous carcinoma of the urethra observed in a 52 year old man is described. The patient had a history of recurrent scrotal abscess for seven and one-half months following trauma to the region. The serum calcium level was found to be elevated when carcinoma was diagnosed. The calcium level returned to normal after resection of the lesion but rose again when local recurrence and metastasis developed. He died three and one-half months after the surgery.

Radiotherapy in the treatment of carcinoma of the male urethra

Carcinoma of the male urethra is an uncommon tumor. Four patients are reported in this investigation. All the patients belonged to the middle age group under the age of 45 years. None of them suffered from preivous urethral structure. The most unusual presentation was impotence due to the involvement of the corpus spongiosum of the penis. Urethrogram and urethroscopy with biopsy are the most useful aids in the diagnosis. All of them had epidermoid carcinoma nad were treated with external radiation therapy. Two patients with distal urethral lesions without metastases responded well with a 4 and 5 years survival and disappearence of the tumor. Two patients with extensive bulbomembranous lesions had palliation with relief of pain and partial regression of the tumor. Radiation therapy in a properly selected patient with an early lesion gives gratifying result.

Experience with primary carcinoma of the male urethra

We reviewed 23 cases of primary carcinoma of the male urethra and compared the clinical findings, treatment and results to the experiences previously reported. Patients with lesions of the pendulous urethra managed by appropriate amputation of the penis with ilio-inguinal node dissection for groin metastases had a good prognosis, whereas patients with lesions of the bulbo-membranous or prostatic urethra had a poor prognosis. Despite occasional successful results with conservative surgical excision and over-all poor results with radical excision the generally extensive nature of such tumors necessarily makes radical excision the treatment of choice.