Primary mesonephric carcinoma of the female urethra

We report the sixth case of mesonephric carcinoma of the female urethra, which is a rare urethral tumor arising from embryonal remnants of the wolffian or mesonephric duct. The 5 cases previously reported are reviewed. Despite the over-all high stage and entire urethral location of these tumors at presentation, their innate biological malignant potential appears to be much less than the usual variants of urethral cancer. Radical surgical procedures appear to offer an excellent prognosis with a 5-year survival rate without evidence of recurrent disease approaching 80 per cent.