What Is Penile Cancer?
Penile cancer, or penis cancer, is when a malignant growth is found in the tissue or on the skin of the penis. 95% of all penile cancers are squamous cell carcinomas, meaning they are found in epithelial cells. Small cell carcinomas and melanomas make up most of the other relatively rare forms of penile cancers.
Penile cancer is a rare form of the disease with around 500 men being diagnosed with it every year in the UK. Most men diagnosed are between the ages of 50 and 70.
The exact cause of penile cancer is not known, but there are risk factors. These include: having HIV, having genital warts, age and smoking.
There are signs to look out for to spot penile cancer such as: a change of colour to the skin, skin thickening, a sore or a growth on the penis, pain in the penis, discharge, a rash, and bleeding from the penis. These symptoms are not unique to penile cancer, but it is best to get them checked out by a doctor at the earliest opportunity.
The LOC has private treatments for penile cancer available at state of the art clinics, where specialists will help to decide on the best course of treatment for the case.