Conservative excision of penile melanoma

Penile melanoma is a rare disease, especially in younger men. Most authorities advocate aggressive surgical management by partial or radical phallectomy and in some cases inguinal lymph node dissection. A 27-year old man with a clinical stage I, Clark's level II, microinvasive (less than 0.76 mm) superficial spreading penile melanoma underwent conservative resection and skin grafting without inguinal node dissection. He has normal penile function and is disease free 5 years following surgery. We believe that in clinical stage I, microinvasive penile melanoma, local excision without inguinal node dissection should be the treatment of choice.