Penile Cancer

Diagnosis

If your physician suspects that you have penile cancer, he may refer you to a urologist, a doctor who specializes in the genitourinary tract. Like most cancers, cancer of the penis is easiest to treat if it is diagnosed early. If left untreated, it will spread slowly across the skin and invade deeper layers of tissue. 

To diagnose penile cancer, the urologist asks about personal and family medical history and does a complete medical exam. The doctor may examine the patient's penis for lumps, open sores or any other abnormalities. If the cancer has spread to the lymph node,s they may be enlarged. 

To make a firm diagnosis, the doctor may suggest a biopsy, in which a small piece of the offending area is taken out, and is sent for histopathological diagnosis, in which the pathologist (a doctor specializing in laboratory diagnosis of diseases) visualizes the tissue section under the microscope and tells you conclusively whether it is a cancer or not.  In penile cancer, incisional or excisional biopsy is performed to obtain the diagnosis. If the results confirm a diagnosis of cancer, the doctor will perform additional tests to determine whether the disease has spread to other parts of the body. This process is called staging.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasonography may be used to determine the extent (stage) of the cancer. MRI uses magnetism to build up a picture of the inside of the penis instead of X-rays. This test can show how deeply the cancer has invaded into the penis. 

Chest x-ray: This test checks whether penile cancer has spread to the lungs.