Current guidelines recommend penile sparing surgery (PSS) for selected penile cancer cases. The present study described the use of PSS in a population-based cohort, and also examined the role of PSS on penile cancer-specific mortality (PCSM). Data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database were used to identify individuals that were diagnosed with penile squamous cell carcinoma between 1998 and 2009 and treated with surgery. Patients were sorted into two groups: Local tumor excision (LTE) and partial/total penectomy (PE). Factors associated with the receipt of LTE and PCSM following LTE were examined. In addition, PCSM was compared between LTE and PE following propensity score matching. Of the 1,292 eligible patients, 24.2% underwent LTE. For stage T1 disease, the rates of LTE increased moderately from 29 to 40% over the last decade. Following multivariate analyses, young age, African descent, a tumor size of <3 cm and stage T1 disease were identified to positively influence the receipt of LTE. With a median follow-up period of 55 months, the four-year PCSM rate was 9.8% in patients treated with LTE. Older age, a tumor size of 3-4 cm and regional/distant disease (SEER stage) were significant predictors of PCSM. Furthermore, in matched cohorts with stage T1 disease, the four-year PCSM rates were 8.9 and 10.0% for patients that received LTE or PE, respectively (P=0.93). In conclusion, underuse of PSS is pronounced in the general community with significant age and ethnicity disparities. The current population-based study provides evidence supporting the oncological safety of PSS compared with PE in early-stage disease.
Keywords: SEER program; multivariate analysis; penile neoplasms; prognosis; surgery; survival.