Urethral Carcinoma in Patients with Urethral Stricture: A Case Report

Primary cancer of the urethra is rare. Its clinical presentation is nonspecific and urethral stricture is one of its risk factors. Authors report herein the case of a 65-year-old male patient with a history of recurrent urethral stricture for which he opted for a suprapubic catheter. He developed a perineal phlegmon that revealed a primary urethral carcinoma. This case shows unusual symptoms that should lead to suspect urethral carcinoma in a patient with urethral stricture. This will allow to avoid late diagnosis caused by misleading symptoms.

Primary tumor surgery improves survival in non-metastatic primary urethral carcinoma patients: a large population-based investigation

Background Primary urethral carcinoma (PUC) is a rare genitourinary malignancy with a relatively poor prognosis. The aim of this study was to examine the impact of surgery on survival of patients diagnosed with PUC. Methods A total of 1544 PUC patients diagnosed between 2004 and 2016 were identified based on the SEER database. The Kaplan-Meier estimate and the Fine and Gray competing risks analysis were performed to assess overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific mortality (CSM). The multivariate Cox regression model and competing risks regression model were used to identify independent risk factors of OS and cancer-specific survival (CSS). Results The 5-yr OS was significantly better in patients who received either local therapy (39.8%) or radical surgery (44.7%) compared to patients receiving no surgery of the primary site (21.5%) (p < 0.001). Both local therapy and radical surgery were each independently associated with decreased CSM, with predicted 5-yr cumulative incidence of 45.4 and 43.3%, respectively, compared to 64.7% for patients receiving no surgery of the primary site (p < 0.001). Multivariate analyses demonstrated that primary site surgery was independently associated with better OS (local therapy, p = 0.037; radical surgery, p < 0.001) and decreased CSM (p = 0.003). Similar results were noted regardless of age, sex, T stage, N stage, and AJCC prognostic groups based on subgroup analysis. However, patients with M1 disease who underwent primary site surgery did not exhibit any survival benefit. Conclusion Surgery for the primary tumor conferred a survival advantage in non-metastatic PUC patients.

The clinicopathological and survival analysis of urological mucosal melanoma: A single-center retrospective observational study.

e21588 Background: Primary mucosal melanoma arising in the urinary tract is rare and poorly characterized. Methods: The records of patients with urological mucosal melanoma who presented to the department of Renal Cancer and Melanoma of Peking University Cancer Hospital between September, 2004 and April, 2019 were reviewed. Available clinicopathological and molecular characteristics were summarized, including pathological parameters, gene mutation, primary surgical intervention, systemic treatment and clinical course. The rates of local recurrence rate, loco-regional lymph node metastasis and distant metastasis were assessed. American Joint Committee on Cancer (AJCC) TNM Staging System for bladder cancer/renal pelvis and ureter cancer/urethral carcinoma (8th ed., 2017) were adopted for staging. Results: Fifty-eight patients were involved in the study with a median age of 62.5 years (range: 32-82). The anatomic sites of the primary urological mucosal melanomas were from the urethra (89.7%), bladder (6.9%), ureter (0%) and kidney (0%), and the left (4.4%) were from multiple loci. At initial diagnosis, 75.9% (n=44) were stage I/II disease, 1.7% (n=1) stage III, and 22.4% (n=13) stage IV. There was 3.4% incidence of CKIT mutation and 1.7% of BRAF mutation. After median follow-up of 22.6 mo, 31.4% (16/51) relapsed locally after organ-preserved surgery. 21.6% (11/51) and 39.2% (20/51) developed metastases to reginal lymph nodes and distance, respectively. The median relapse free survival and median overall survival were 12.2 (95%CI: 7.9-16.4) mo and 33.9 (95%CI: 19.2-48.6) mo, respectively. Univariate Cox analysis showed that TNM stage and systemic adjuvant therapy were the prognostic factors of OS, while no association was found with Breslow thickness, miotic rate, ulceration and gender. Conclusions: Urological mucosal melanoma predominantly arises from lower urinary tract with rare BRAF and CKIT mutation. AJCC TNM Staging System for urothelial carcinoma is proved practical for urothelial melanoma, which should be validated in larger population. Future research is required to identify adjuvant treatment approaches to improve disease outcomes.

Urethral cancer managed with phallus preserving surgery: a case report

BackgroundPrimary urethral carcinoma (PUC) is rare and accounts for < 1% of all genito-urinary cancers. There is a male predominance of 3:1 and a peak incidence in the 7th and 8th decades. The aetiology of this cancer is similar to penile cancer, and the human papilloma virus (HPV) is thought to be an essential factor in tumorigenesis. Urethral cancer should be diagnosed and staged with a combination of tumour biopsy, MRI, and CT with treatment involving a multimodal approach. Contemporary management emphasises phallus-preserving surgery where feasible.Case presentationHere, we describe a case of distal urethral carcinoma, which presented as a metastatic groin mass and identifying the primary lesion proved challenging. Diagnostic flexible cystoscopy identified a tiny lesion in the navicular fossa, which was biopsied and confirmed to be a squamous cell carcinoma. The patient then underwent phallus preserving surgery, including distal urethrectomy with bilateral inguinal lymph node dissections. The final stage was pT1N1M0, and adjuvant chemotherapy was started. The distal urethrectomy involved the surgical creation of a hypospadic meatus in the midshaft of the penis. Normal voiding and sexual function were preserved.ConclusionsUrethral cancer is a rare malignancy and clinicians should bear in mind that early diagnosis of this disease can be very difficult depending on the anatomical location of the tumour. Treatment currently favours penis-preserving surgery.