[Clinical analysis of penile cancers among Chinese in Taiwan]

From 1972 to 1984, 34 patients with the histologic diagnosis of penile carcinoma were treated at Kaohsiung Medical College Hospital. Of the 34 patients 1 (3%) had transitional cell carcinoma, the others had epidermoid carcinoma. Their ages ranged from 19 to 73 years with a mean of 54 years; the majority of the patients were in the fifth and sixth decades of life. The most common clinical symptom of the tumor was a mass or ulcer over the penis. Phimosis, Bowen's disease and venereal diseases seemed to bear a close etiologic relationship to the penile carcinoma. The prognosis of penile cancer depends upon the stage of the disease. The 5-year survival rates were: 60% for Stage A, 38% for Stage C, and 0% for Stage D patients. Cumulative survival rate was 39%. Circumcision in the neonatal stage is the most effective method in preventing such a disease.