[Hybrid tumor of the penis: is this denomination correct?].

Objective: Few cases of verrucous carcinoma of the penis with foci of invasive squamous cell carcinoma have been reported and denominated "hybrid tumors". The accuracy of this term is discussed in this paper.
Methods/results: A huge penile mass in a patient that had undergone three previous operations for lesions diagnosed as verrucous carcinoma is reported. Partial penectomy was performed. Histological examination showed a very well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma. PCR (polymerase chain reaction) did not detect any type of human papillomavirus (HPV) in the tumor.
Conclusions: Verrucous carcinoma is a strictly-defined lesion with a different biological behaviour from that of squamous carcinoma. Preoperative deep biopsy may miss the squamous cell carcinoma. Definitive diagnosis can only be achieved by histological examination of the surgical specimen. In future, DNA studies could possibly support preoperative diagnosis of this lesion.