[Penile carcinoma: diagnosis and therapy]

Penile carcinoma is fortunately a relatively rare disease in central Europe because advanced tumor stages are incurable. However, this rarity results in disadvantages for those affected because data from large series as an evidence basis are rare, the formulation of guidelines is often correspondingly vague and research funding for therapy studies is limited. Penile carcinoma is an orphan disease. Despite these disadvantageous characteristics research on the molecular biological basis of penile carcinoma has made some progress in recent years. This article gives a current review of all relevant aspects of this disease.