[Surgical treatment and quality of life in patients with carcinoma of the penis].

Penile carcinoma is a rare disease with the annual incidence of 1-2 cases per 100,000 men. About 95% of all penile malignancies are squamous cell carcinoma. At the Clinic of Urology in the period 1988-1998 we treated 58 patients with penile carcinoma. Nine of these (15.5%) were subjected to total penectomy due to the extent of the lesion, while partial amputation of the penis was performed in 84.5% (49 cases). The aim of the therapy was to completely remove the primary lesion with adequate margins. Postoperative follow-up comprised, among other things, evaluation of the quality of life as reflected in pain, sexuality and emotional distress. Quality of life of patients subjected to partial penectomy where no cases of relapse were recorded, was satisfactory, while in cases of total penectomy about 24% (14 patients) suffered marked emotional distress induced by the loss of the mark of male sexuality and sexual impotence. In the light of the prominent problems related to the quality of life induced by severe psychological influence of penis amputation, local excision, Mohs's operation and laser therapy are increasingly used in the treatment of penile carcinoma.