View source for Penile cancer

'''Penile cancer''' is a malignant growth found on the [[skin]] or in the tissues of the [[penis]]. Squamous cell carcinoma usually originating in the [[glans penis|glans]] or [[foreskin]] is by far the most common type, occurring in 9 out of 10 cases.<ref>{{REFweb
 |quote=
 |url=http://www.cancerhelp.org.uk/help/default.asp?page=22698
 |title=Cancer Research UK: Types of penile cancer
 |last=
 |first=
 |publisher=
 |website=
 |date=
 |accessdate=2008-06-24
}}</ref> Penile cancer is extremely rare, and it tends to develop in men over the age of sixty.<ref>{{REFbook
 |last=Frisch
 |first=Morten
 |init=M
 |author-link=Morten Frisch
 |url=https://www.academia.edu/35098839/Penile_Cancer
 |chapter=Penile Cancer
 |title=Cancer Epidemiology and Prevention
 |editor=Thun M.J., Linet M.S., Cerhan J.S., Schottenfeld D.
 |edition=4
 |pages=1029-1038
 |publisher={{UNI|Oxford University|Oxon}} Press
 |location=New York
 |date=2018
 |accessdate=2020-09-19
}}</ref>

== Risk factors ==

The major risk factors for penile cancer are advanced age (greater than age 60), use of tobacco, and infection with human papilloma virus.

===Circumcision myth===

The myth that [[smegma]] was a carcinogenic, and thus that [[circumcision]] would render a man immune to penile cancer, was invented in 1932 by a defender of [[Brit Milah| ritual circumcision]] named [[Abraham L. Wolbarst]], who also believed that [[circumcision]] prevented venereal disease,<ref name="wolbarst1914">{{REFjournal
 |last=Wolbarst
 |first=Abraham L.
 |init=AL
 |author-link=Abraham L. Wolbarst
 |title=Universal Circumcision as a Sanitary Measure
 |journal=JAMA
 |date=1914-1-10
 |volume=62
 |issue=2
 |pages=92-97
 |url=https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/453164
 |accessdate=2023-09-06
}}</ref> epilepsy, paralysis, and [[masturbation]].<ref>{{Wolbarst1932}}</ref> No laboratory or clinical research had been done on the subject at the time, however Wolbarst's myth found its way into early medical textbooks regardless. Although the smegma hypothesis was completely disproven by an exhaustive study by Reddy in 1963,<ref name="reddy1963">{{REFjournal
 |init=DG
 |last=Reddy
 |init2=IK
 |last2=Baruah
 |title=Carcinogenic Action of Human Smegma
 |journal=Archives of Pathology
 |volume=75
 |issue=4
 |date=1963-04
 |pages=414-420
 |pubmedID=13973496
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=
 |doi=
 |accessdate=2023-09-06
}}</ref> circumcision advocates continue to stubbornly repeat it.

The American Cancer Society (1996) pointed out that incidence of penile cancer is lower in nations that do not circumcise and urged the [[American Academy of Pediatrics]] ''not'' to promote child [[circumcision]] as a preventive against cancer.<ref>{{REFweb
 |url=https://www.nocirc.org/position/acs.php
 |title=Letter to American Academy of Pediatrics
 |last=
 |first=
 |init=
 |publisher=American Cancer Society
 |date=1996-02-16
 |accessdate=2023-09-06
}}</ref>

===Infection with human papilloma virus===

The link between the presence of [[human papillovirus]] (HPV) and genital cancer was established in the 1980s.<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=zur Hausen
 |init=H
 |title=Genital papillomavirus infections
 |journal=Prog Med Virol
 |date=1985
 |volume=32
 |pages=15-21
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Kaufman
 |init=RH
 |last2=Adam
 |init2=E
 |title=[[Herpes]] simplex virus and human papilloma virus in the development of cervical carcinoma
 |journal=Clin Obstet Gynecol
 |date=1986
 |volume=3
 |pages=678-692
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=McCance
 |init=DJ
 |last2=Kalache
 |init2=A
 |last3=Ashdown
 |init3=K
 |etal=yes
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/mccance/
 |title=Human papillomavirus types 16 and 18 in carcinomas of the penis from Brazil
 |journal=Int J Cancer
 |date=1986
 |volume=37
 |pages=55-59
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Villa
 |init=LL
 |last2=Lopes
 |init2=A
 |title=Human papillomavirus DNA sequences in penile carcinomas in Brazil
 |journal=Int J Cancer
 |date=1986
 |volume=37
 |issue=6
 |pages=853-5
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=McCance
 |init=DJ
 |title=Human papillomaviruses and cancer
 |journal=Biochem Biophys Acta
 |date=1986
 |issue=823
 |pages=195-206
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Barrasso
 |init=R
 |last2=De Brux
 |init2=J
 |last3=Croissant
 |init3=O
 |etal=yes
 |title=High prevalence of papillomavirus-associated penile intraepithelial neoplasia in sexual partners of women with cervical intraepithelial neoplasia
 |journal=N Engl J Med
 |date=1987-10-08
 |volume=317
 |issue=15
 |pages=916-23
}}</ref> Poland identified human papilloma virus (HPV) types 16 and 18 as the cause of penile and cervical cancers in 1990, and that they could be spread by sexual contact.<ref name="poland1990">{{REFjournal
 |last=Poland
 |init=RL
 |author-link=Ronald L. Poland
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/general/poland/
 |title=The question of routine neonatal circumcision
 |journal=N Eng J Med
 |date=1990
 |volume=322
 |pages=1312-5
}}</ref> At least one study suggests that [[circumcised]] men are at higher risk for HPV infection,<ref name="cook1993">{{REFjournal
 |last=Cook
 |init=LS
 |last2=Koutsky
 |init2=LA
 |last3=Holmes
 |init3=KK
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/STD/cook2/
 |title=Clinical presentation of genital warts among circumcised and uncircumcised heterosexual men attending an urban STD clinic
 |journal=Genitourin Med
 |date=1993
 |volume=69
 |pages=262-4
}}</ref> making being [[circumcised]] a risk factor.

===Use of tobacco===

Hellberg et al. (1986) identified tobacco use as another risk factor for cancer of the penis.<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Hellberg
 |init=D
 |last2=Valentin
 |init2=J
 |last3=Eklund
 |init3=T
 |last4=Nilsson
 |first4=Staffan
 |init4=S
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/hellberg1/
 |title=Penile cancer: is there an epidemiological role for smoking and sexual behavior?
 |journal=Brit Med J
 |date=1987
 |volume=295
 |issue=6609
 |pages=1306-8
}}</ref>The use of tobacco has since been a well established risk factor in cancer of the penis.<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Harish
 |init=K
 |last2=Ravi
 |init2=R
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/harish/
 |title=The role of tobacco in penile carcinoma
 |journal=Brit J Urol
 |date=1995
 |volume=75
 |issue=3
 |pages=375-377
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Rogus
 |init=BJ
 |title=Squamous cell carcinoma in a young circumcised man
 |journal=J Urol
 |date=1987
 |volume=138
 |issue=4
 |pages=861-2
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Maden
 |init=C
 |etal=yes
 |title=History of Circumcision, Medical Conditions, and Sexual Activity and Risk of Penile Cancer
 |journal=Journal of the National Cancer Institute
 |volume=85
 |issue=1
 |date=1993-01-06
 |pages=19-24
}}</ref>

Other risks include poor hygiene, and an increased number of sexual partners (30 partners or more).<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Brinton
 |init=LA
 |last2=Reeves
 |init2=WC
 |last3=Brenes
 |init3=MM
 |etal=yes
 |title=The male factor in the etiology of cervical cancer among sexually monogamous women
 |journal=Int J Cancer
 |date=1989
 |volume=44
 |issue=2
 |pages=199-203
}}</ref>

===Other risks===
[[Phimosis]] has been implicated as a risk factor in sexually active males, because a non-retractile [[foreskin]] may result in poor hygiene, and because men with [[phimosis]] are at higher risk for lichen sclerosus (also known as [[balanitis xerotica obliterans]]), which may also be a risk factor.<ref name="Rickwood">{{REFjournal
 |url=http://web.archive.org/web/20080513042221/http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/eletters/321/7264/792
 |REM=http://web.archive.org/web/20080513042221/http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/eletters/321/7264/792#110919
 |archived=yes
 |title=Rapid Responses for Rickwood et al.
 |last=Various authors
 |first=
 |journal=BMJ
 |volume=321
 |issue=7264
 |pages=792-3
 |accessdate=2022-03-13
}}</ref> Adult males with a non-retractable [[foreskin]] who are sexually active may want to have the phimotic condition corrected. (For conservative treatment options, see [[phimosis]].)

===Circumcision as a risk factor===

Bissada et al. (1986) report cancer forms on the [[circumcision scar]].<ref name="bissada1986">{{REFjournal
 |last=Bissada
 |init=NK
 |author-link=
 |last2=Morcos
 |init2=RR
 |author2-link=
 |last3=el-Senoussi
 |init3=M
 |author3-link=
 |etal=no
 |title=Post-circumcision carcinoma of the penis. I. Clinical aspects
 |journal=J Urol
 |location=
 |date=1986-02
 |volume=135
 |issue=2
 |pages=283-5
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/bissada1/
 |quote=
 |pubmedID=3944860
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=10.1016/s0022-5347(17)45614-x
 |accessdate=2020-02-10
}}</ref> Circumcision may now be considered a risk factor for penile cancer.

== Symptoms ==

Symptoms include redness, irritation, a sore or a lump on the penis.<ref>{{REFweb
 |quote=
 |url=http://www.medicinenet.com/penis_cancer/page2.htm
 |title=Penis Cancer
 |last=
 |first=
 |publisher=
 |website=
 |date=
 |accessdate=2008-06-24
}}</ref>

== Pathology ==
* A. Precancerous Dermatologic Lesions
* B. Carcinoma in Situ (Bowen Disease, Erythroplasia of Queyrat)
* C. Invasive Carcinoma of the Penis

== Staging ==
Like many malignancies, penile cancer can spread to other parts of the body. It is usually a primary malignancy, the initial place from which a cancer spreads in the body. Much less often it is a secondary malignancy, one in which the cancer has spread to the penis from elsewhere. Doctors use the extent of [[metastasis]] to estimate what stage the disease is in, to aid in treatment decisions and prognosis. The stages are assessed as follows (Jackson's staging):

* Stage I - Cancer has only affected the [[glans penis|glans]] and/or foreskin.
* Stage II - Cancer has spread to the [[penis|shaft]] of the penis.
* Stage III - Mobile (operable) inguinal lymph nodes.
* Stage IV - Fixed (inoperable) inguinal lymph nodes or distant metastasis.

* Recurrent - Cancer that has returned after treatment.

Prognosis can range considerably for patients, depending where on the scale they have been staged. Generally speaking, the earlier the cancer is diagnosed, the better the prognosis. The overall 5-year survival rate for all stages of penile cancer is about 50 percent.

== Treatment ==

There are several treatment options for penile cancer, depending on staging. They include surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and biological therapy. The most common treatment is one of five types of surgery:

* Wide local [[excision]] - The tumor and some surrounding healthy tissue are removed.
* Microsurgery - Surgery performed with a microscope is used to remove the tumor and as little healthy tissue as possible.
* Laser surgery - laser light is used to burn or cut away cancerous cells.
* [[Circumcision]] - cancerous foreskin is removed.
* [[Amputation]] ([[penectomy]]) - a partial or total removal of the penis, and possibly the associated lymph nodes.  

Radiation therapy is usually used adjuvantly with surgery to reduce the risk of recurrence. With earlier stages of penile cancer, a combination of topical chemotherapy and less invasive surgery may be used. More advanced stages of penile cancer usually require a combination of surgery, radiation and chemotherapy.
In addition to all the above, treatment of the underlying disease like Brucellosis, is important to limit disease recurrence.

== Circumcision as prevention myth==

The myth that [[circumcision]] rendered males immune to penile cancer was invented in 1932 by a New York doctor named [[Abraham L. Wolbarst]], {{MD}}<ref name="Wolbarst 1932">{{Wolbarst1932}}</ref> Wolbarst wrote an article that was published in ''The Lancet'' in 1932, implicating human male [[smegma]] as carcinogenic.<ref name="Wolbarst 1932"/> His hypothesis had absolutely no basis in valid scientific and epidemiological research.<ref name="FleissPM HodgesFM 1996">{{REFjournal
 |last=Fleiss
 |init=PM
 |author-link=Paul M. Fleiss
 |last2=Hodges
 |init2=F
 |author2-link=Frederick M. Hodges
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/fleiss/
 |title=Neonatal circumcision does not protect against cancer
 |journal=BMJ
 |date=1996
 |volume=312
 |issue=7033
 |pages=779-80
}}</ref> Wolbarst was directly responsible for proliferation of this myth, and all subsequent repetitons of it can be traced to his opinion article, although Wolbarst himself advocated universal neonatal circumcision principally as a preventive for epilepsy, paralysis, and [[masturbation]].<ref name="FleissPM HodgesFM 1996"/>

Wolbarst's opinion piece led to the perpetuation of the myth that penile cancer could not happen to males that were circumcised in infancy. This myth was completely disproven when Boczko et al. (1979) reported the 9th documented case of penile cancer in a man who had been [[circumcised]] in infancy from the time of Wolbarst's opinion piece to the time of the report in 1968 (though they would maintain that "performing [circumcision] in infancy continues to be the most effective prophylactic measure against penile carcinoma").<ref name="boczko1979">{{REFjournal
 |last=Boczko
 |init=S
 |last2=Freed
 |init2=S
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/boczko/
 |title=Penile carcinoma in circumcised males]
 |journal=N Y State J Med
 |date=1979
 |volume=79
 |issue=12
 |pages=1903-4
}}</ref> Boczko et al. (1979) wrote: ''"The diagnosis in our patient was made late, as in the other cases reported, perhaps because the disease was presumed not to occur in those [[circumcised]] in infancy. This is clearly not so. Although rare, the diagnosis must be considered when evaluating a penile lesion even in a circumcised individual."''

In 1993, Christopher Maden, {{PhD}}, et al. reported a study in which 110 men with penile cancer, diagnosed from January 1979, to July, 1990, were interviewed. Of these 110 men, 22 had been [[circumcised]] at birth, 19 later in life, and 69 never.<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Poland
 |init=R
 |title=The question of routine neonatal circumcision
 |journal=New Engl J Med
 |url=https://www.cirp.org/library/general/poland/
 |date=1990
 |volume=322
 |issue=18
 |pages=1312-4
 |pubmedID=2183058
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=10.1056/NEJM199005033221811 
 |doi=
 |accessdate=2023-09-06
}}
}}</ref> As cases of penile cancer in circumcised men begin to accumulate<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Pec Jr
 |init=J
 |last2=Pec Sr
 |init2=J
 |last3=Plank
 |init3=L
 |last4=Plank
 |init4=J
 |last5=Lazarova
 |init5=Z
 |last6=Kliment
 |init6=J
 |title=Squamous cell carcinoma of the penis. Analysis of 24 cases
 |journal=Int Urol Nephrol
 |date=1992
 |volume=24
 |pages=193-200
}}</ref><ref name="Aynaud etal 1994">{{REFjournal
 |last=Aynaud
 |init=O
 |last2=Ionesco
 |init2=M
 |last3=Barrasso
 |init3=R
 |title=Penile intraepithelial neoplasia. Specific clinical features correlate with histologic and virologic findings
 |journal=Cancer
 |date=1994
 |volume=74
 |pages=1762-7
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Bissada
 |init=NK
 |last2=Morcos
 |init2=RR
 |last3=el-Senoussi
 |init3=M
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/bissada1/
 |title=Post-circumcision carcinoma of the penis. I. Clinical aspects
 |journal=J Urol
 |date=1986
 |volume=135
 |pages=283-5
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Rogus
 |init=BJ
 |title=Squamous cell carcinoma in a young circumcised man
 |journal=J Urol
 |date=1987
 |volume=138
 |pages=861-2
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Windahl
 |init=T
 |last2=Hellsten
 |init2=S
 |title=Laser treatment of localized squamous cell carcinoma of the penis
 |journal=J Urol
 |date=1995
 |volume=154
 |pages=1020-3
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Leiter
 |init=E
 |last2=Lefkovitis
 |init2=AM
 |title=Circumcision and penile carcinoma
 |journal=N Y State J Med
 |date=1975
 |volume=75
 |pages=1520-2
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Onuigbo
 |init=WI
 |title=Carcinoma of skin of penis
 |journal=Br J Urol
 |date=1985
 |volume=57
 |pages=465-6
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Korczak
 |init=D
 |last2=Siegel
 |init2=Y
 |last3=Lindner
 |init3=A
 |title=[Verrucous carcinoma of the penis]
 |journal=Harefuah
 |date=1989
 |volume=117
 |pages=436-7
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Girgis
 |init=AS
 |last2=Bergman
 |init2=H
 |last3=Rosenthal
 |init3=H
 |last4=Solomon
 |init4=L
 |title=Unusual penile malignancies in circumcised Jewish men
 |journal=J Urol
 |date=1973
 |volume=110
 |pages=696-702
}}</ref>

Cold et al. (1997) reported a case of penile cancer in a 76-year-old white man."<ref name="cold1997">{{REFjournal
 |last=Cold 
 |first=
 |init=CJ
 |author-link=
 |last2=Storms
 |first2=
 |init2=MJ
 |author2-link=
 |last3=Van Howe
 |first3=
 |init3=RJ
 |author3-link=Robert S. Van Howe
 |etal=no
 |title=Carcinoma in situ of the penis in a 76-year-old circumcised man.
 |trans-title=
 |language=
 |journal=J Fam Pract
 |location=
 |date=1997-04
 |season=
 |volume=44
 |issue=
 |article=
 |page=
 |pages=407-10
 |url=https://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/vanhowe/
 |archived=
 |quote=
 |pubmedID=9108839
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=
 |doi=
 |accessdate=2023-09-05
}}</ref> The medical literature contains numerous additional case reports of cancer in [[circumcised]] men.

it becomes clear that the assertion that [[circumcision]] eliminates the risk of penile cancer is categorically false, although some circumcision advocates continue to make this assertion.
=== Discussion ===
Advocates of [[circumcision]] may yet point to the aforementioned studies and highlight that the incidence of penile cancer was still lower in the [[circumcised]] groups of men studied, than it was in the [[intact]] group, and that thus "a lowered risk of penile cancer is observed in circumcised men." It is important to remember when looking at the studies performed in the 1950s, that the octogenarians afflicted with penile cancer were born in the 1870s, when the circumcision rate in the United States was close to zero; the majority of men in that generation who were afflicted with cancer would be [[intact]]. The increased number of cases of penile cancer found in more recent studies is reflective of the steadily increasing circumcision rates in this country (37% of Maden's cases were [[circumcised]]). Using Maden's numbers and properly adjusting his control population to match the case population for age, there was no difference in risk of developing penile cancer between men who were circumcised and those who were not. HPV (the cause of genital warts) has been found in most cases of penile cancer. Genital warts are now more common in [[circumcised]] men <ref name="cook1994">{{REFjournal
 |last=Cook
 |init=LS
 |last2=Koutsky
 |init2=LA
 |last3=Holmes
 |init3=KK
 |title=Circumcision and sexually transmitted diseases
 |journal=Am J Public Health
 |date=1994
 |volume=84
 |pages=197-201
}}</ref><ref name="cook1993"/> and HPV lesions are equally common in [[circumcised]] and [[intact]] men.<ref name="Aynaud etal 1994"/> As the number of [[circumcised]] men approaching the age at which penile cancer becomes evident (70s and 80s) it is quite likely that the vast majority of men developing penile cancer in the [[United States]] will be [[circumcised]].

Reddy et al. (1975) examined the frequency of carcinoma of the penis from 32 hospitals in India and found a wide variation in incidence that could not be explained by the [[intact]] status of the Hindus or the [[circumcision]] practices of the Muslims.<ref name="reddy1975">{{REFjournal
 |last=Reddy
 |init=CR
 |last2=Raghavaiah
 |init2=NV
 |last3=Mouli
 |init3=KC
 |title=Prevalence of carcinoma of the penis with special reference to India
 |journal=Int Surg
 |date=1975
 |volume=60
 |pages=474-6
 |pubmedID=54346
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=
 |doi=
 |accessdate=2023-09-08
}}</ref> Finally, circumcision does not explain why Japan and [[Denmark]] have lower penile cancer rates than the [[United States]] when circumcision, especially infant [[circumcision]], is not common in those two countries.<ref name="kochen1980">{{REFjournal
 |last=Kochen
 |init=M
 |last2=McCurdy
 |init2=S
 |title=Circumcision and the risk of cancer of the penis. A life-table analysis
 |journal=Am J Dis Child
 |date=1980
 |volume=134
 |pages=484-6
}}</ref><ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Swafford
 |init=TD
 |author-link=Thomas D. Swafford
 |title=Circumcision and the risk of cancer of the penis [letter]
 |journal=Am J Dis Child
 |date=1985
 |volume=139
 |page=112
}}</ref>

In "[[Circumcision: An American Health Fallacy]]," [[Edward Wallerstein]] writes: ''"If infant circumcision reduces penile cancer we could expect to see proportionately less penile cancer in circumcising nations as compared to noncircumcising ones. No such difference is found."'' Wallerstein reports that, for various years between 1966 and 1972, the annual rate of new cases of penile cancer was 0.8 for the [[United States]] (where circumcision rates are high), and 0.5 for [[Finland]], 0.9 for [[Denmark]] and 1.1 for both [[Norway]] and [[Sweden]] (all of where circumcision rates are low). None of these differences is statistically significant.<ref>{{WallersteinE 1980}}</ref> Further, within the same time frame, both France and the [[United States]] had the same rate, 0.3, of deaths due to penile cancer.<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Hyman
 |init=AB
 |last2=Brownstein
 |init2=MH
 |title=Tyson's "Glands"
 |journal=Archives of Dermatology
 |volume=99
 |issue=1
 |date=1969-01
 |pages=31-37
}}</ref>

== Incidence of penile cancer ==

In North America the rate of penile cancer has been estimated to be 1 in 100,000<ref>{{REFdocument
 |last=Cutler
 |init=SJ
 |last2=Young Jr
 |init2=JL
 |title=Third national cancer survey: incidence data
 |location=Bethesda, {{USSC|MD}}
 |publisher=US Dept of Health, Education, and Welfare, Public Health Service
 |date=1975
}}</ref>. Maden et al. (1993) reported penile cancer among a fifth of elderly patients from rural areas who had been circumcised neonatally and had been born at a time when the rate of neonatal circumcision was about 20% in rural populations.<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Maden
 |init=C
 |last2=Sherman
 |init2=KJ
 |last3=Beckman
 |init3=AM
 |last4=Hislop
 |init4=TG
 |last5=Teh
 |init5=CZ
 |last6=Ashley
 |init6=RL
 |etal=yes
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/maden/
 |title=History of circumcision, medical conditions, and sexual activity and risk of penile cancer
 |journal=JNCI
 |date=1993
 |volume=85
 |pages=19-24
}}</ref> Their study also shows that the rate of penile cancer among men circumcised neonatally has risen in the United States relative to the rise in the rate of neonatal circumcision.

Penile cancer is very rare in Europe and North America, occurring in about one in 100,000 men in the latter. It accounts for 0.2% of cancers and 0.1% of deaths from cancer amongst males in the United States. However, in some parts of Africa and South America it accounts for up to 10% of cancers in men.<ref name="What Are the Key Statistics About Penile Cancer?">{{REFweb
 |quote=
 |url=http://web.archive.org/web/20071030194444/http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_4_1X_What_are_the_key_statistics_for_penile_cancer_35.asp?sitearea=
 |archived=yes
 |title=ACS :: What Are the Key Statistics About Penile Cancer?
 |last=
 |first=
 |publisher=
 |website=
 |date=2007-10-30
 |accessdate=2007-12-13
}}</ref>

In Japan, Norway, and Sweden, the risk of penile cancer is about the same  as in the US (1 in 100,000 per year).<ref>{{REFjournal
 |last=Wallerstein
 |init=E
 |title=Circumcision. The uniquely American medical enigma
 |journal=Urol Clin North Am
 |volume=12
 |issue=1
 |pages=123-32
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/general/wallerstein/
 |quote=
 |pubmedID=3883617
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=
 |date=1985-02
 |accessdate=2020-02-10
}}</ref>

== HPV vaccine ==

The main article for this is [[//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HPV_vaccine HPV vaccine]] on Wikipedia.

Infection with human papilloma virus (HPV} is associated with many penile cancers.  A quadri-valent vaccine ([[Gardasil]]) to prevent infection by the four most common variants of HPV has been developed, successfully tested, and approved by the US [[Food and Drug Administration]] for females between the ages of 9 and 26, and as of 2009, males between the ages of 16 and 26.<ref name="Nature Reviews Drug Discovery">{{REFjournal
 |last=Crum
 |init=C
 |last2=Jones
 |init2=C
 |last3=Kirkpatrick
 |init3=P
 |title=Quadrivalent human papillomavirus recombinant vaccine
 |journal=Nature reviews. Drug discovery
 |volume=5
 |issue=8
 |pages=629-30
 |url=http://www.nature.com/nrd/journal/v5/n8/full/nrd2117.html
 |quote=
 |pubmedID=16918020
 |pubmedCID=
 |DOI=10.1038/nrd2117
 |date=2006-08
 |accessdate=
}}</ref> Gardasil has been shown to also be effective in males, and has been approved by the FDA to be marketed as such.<ref name="Bloomberg">{{REFnews
 |last=Cortez
 |first=Michelle Fay
 |last2=Pettypiece
 |first2=Shannon
 |url=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601202&sid=aajzweDaXZh0&refer=healthcare
 |title=Merck Cancer Shot Cuts Genital Warts, Lesions in Men
 |puglisher=Bloomberg News
 |website=Bloomberg.com
 |date=2008-11-13
}}</ref> Two to three doses are necessary.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevenntion (CDC) recommends that male and female children be vaccinated against HPV when they are eleven or twelve years old.<ref>{{REFweb
 |url=https://www.cdc.gov/hpv/
 |title=Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
 |last=
 |first=
 |init=
 |publisher=Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
 |date=
 |accessdate=2023-09-06
}}</ref>

{{SEEALSO}}
* [[Abraham L. Wolbarst]]
* [[Cervical cancer]]

{{LINKS}}
* {{REFweb
 |url=http://www.cirp.org/library/disease/cancer/
 |title=Penile cancer, cervical cancer, and circumcision
 |last=
 |first=
 |author-link=
 |publisher=Circumcision Reference Library
 |website=CIRP
 |date=2008-11-06
 |accessdate=2020-02-11
 |format=
 |quote=
}}
* {{REFweb
 |url=https://www.doctorsopposingcircumcision.org/for-professionals/alleged-medical-benefits/cancer-of-the-penis/
 |title=Cancer of the Penis
 |last=
 |first=
 |author-link=
 |publisher=[[Doctors Opposing Circumcision (D.O.C.)]]
 |website=
 |date=2016-02-09
 |accessdate=2020-02-11
 |format=
 |quote=
}}

{{ABBR}}
{{REF}}

[[Category:Penile illness]]

[[Category:From Intactipedia]]
[[Category:From IntactWiki]]