Natural history, management, and surveillance of recurrent squamous cell penile carcinoma: a risk-based approach

For men with penile carcinoma, surveillance strategies may be tailored to the risks of local and regional recurrence, which vary according to the pathologic characteristics of the primary tumor and the modalities employed for local therapy (phallus sparing or extirpative) and regional therapy (surveillance or lymphadenectomy). Men at a higher risk for local or regional recurrence who should have more rigorous follow-up include those (1) treated with phallus-sparing strategies such as laser ablation, topical therapies, or radiotherapy; (2) patients with clinically negative inguinal lymph nodes who are managed without lymphadenectomy despite high-risk primary tumors (pT2-3, grade 3, vascular invasion); and (3) those with lymph node metastases after lymphadenectomy. Good candidates for less-stringent surveillance include patients with low-risk primary tumors (pTis, pTa, pT1, grades 1-2) and those with negative inguinal nodes after lymphadenectomy whose primary tumors were managed with partial or total penectomy.