Pannus Is the New Prepuce? Penile Cancer in a Buried Phallus

Abstract

Two males presented to our urology department with complaints of bleeding and malodor from buried phallus within a suprapubic fat pad. Although both men had neonatal circumcisions, advanced penile carcinoma was found in both men. Formal penectomies showed high grade, poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma invading the corporal bodies and urethra. Buried penis represents a difficulty in early detection of suspicious lesions but may also provide an environment susceptible to poor hygiene and subsequent chronic inflammation. Patients with buried penis may be at a higher risk for development of invasive penile cancer and may benefit from regular and thorough genital exams.

Obesity‐related male genital lichen sclerosus

“…Both had been circumcised as infants, and the authors postulate that the environment created by penile shafts being buried in suprapubic fat pads predisposed to development of malignancy: the title of their paper is salutary: 'Pannus is the New Prepuce?'. 12 In our specialty clinics, men who have been circumcised and subsequently develop GLSc are a minority. However, of those men, almost all are overweight or obese.…”