Stages of penile cancer
Staging describes or classifies a cancer based on how much cancer there is in the body and where it is when first diagnosed. This is often called the extent of cancer. The healthcare team uses information from tests to find out the size of the tumour, which parts of the organ have cancer, whether the cancer has spread from where it first started and where the cancer has spread. Doctors use the stage to plan treatment and estimate the outcome (prognosis).
The most common staging system for penile cancer is the
When describing the stage, doctors may use the words local, regional or distant.
Local means that the cancer is only in the penis and hasn’t spread to other parts of the body.
Regional means close to the penis or around it.
Distant means in a part of the body farther from the penis.
The stages of penile cancer also depend on the grade. The grade describes how different the cancer cells look from normal cells, how quickly they grow and divide, and how likely they are to spread.
Talk to your doctor if you have questions. Find out more about staging and grading cancer.
Stage 0
Stage 0 is divided into stages 0is and 0a.
Stage 0is
means the
Stage 0a means squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the penis is only found in the top layers of the skin and hasn’t spread. This stage is also called non-invasive localized SCC.
Stage 1
The cancer has grown into the connective tissue just below the skin of the penis, but it hasn’t grown into the corpus spongiosum, blood vessels or lymph vessels.
The tumour is not high grade, which means the cancer cells look and behave a lot like normal cells in the penis.
Stage 2
Stage 2 is divided into stages 2A and 2B.
Stage 2A means any of the following situations.
The cancer has grown into the connective tissue just below the skin of the penis, and into the blood vessels and lymph vessels (called lymphovascular invasion) or the nerves.
OR
The tumour is high grade. The cancer cells look very different from normal cells, or look long and tapered (spindle-shaped or sarcomatoid) under a microscope.
OR
The cancer has grown into the corpus spongiosum and may have grown into the urethra.
Stage 2B means that the cancer has grown into a corpus cavernosum and may also have grown into the urethra.
Stage 3
Stage 3 is divided into stages 3A and 3B.
Stage 3A means the cancer has spread to 1 or 2 lymph nodes on one side of the groin.
Stage 3B means that the cancer has spread to 3 or more lymph nodes on one side of the groin. Or the cancer has spread to lymph nodes on both sides of the groin.
Stage 4
The cancer has grown into a nearby structure, such as the scrotum, prostate or pubic bone. It may also have spread to lymph nodes in the groin.
OR
The cancer has spread beyond the capsule of the lymph nodes in the groin and has grown into nearby tissue (called extranodal extension). Or it has spread to the lymph nodes in the pelvis.
OR
The cancer has spread to other parts of the body (called distant metastasis), such as to the lungs, liver or bone. This is also called metastatic penile cancer.
Recurrent penile cancer
Recurrent penile cancer means that the cancer has come back after it has been treated. If it comes back in the same place that the cancer first started, it’s called local recurrence. If it comes back in tissues or lymph nodes close to where it first started, it’s called regional recurrence. It can also recur in another part of the body. This is called distant metastasis or distant recurrence.
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