Penile cancer: new biomarkers in diagnosis and treatment. Review

Penile cancer is a rare urological neoplasia in men. However, this neoplasm continues to be detected in a large number of patients worldwide, while developing countries have the highest rates of morbidity and mortality. At the epidemiological level, this neoplasm is very rare in developed countries, where it accounts for less than 1% of malignant neoplasms in men and has a morbidity rate of approximately 1.33 cases per 100,000 men in Europe, unlike developing countries, where penile cancer accounts for up to 20% of malignant neoplasms in men. In Russia, the incidence rate was 0.67 per 100,000 male population. This disease usually affects older men, and the average age of which is about 60 years. Numerous risk factors are described, among which phimosis and papillomavirus infection (HPV) are of particular importance. Phimosis is associated with a deterioration in the hygiene of the genitals, which leads to the accumulation of smegma, which contributes to the situation of chronic inflammation, causing dysplastic changes in the epithelium and subsequently the appearance of true invasive neoplasia. Penile carcinoma is a rare malignant urological neoplasia in developed countries, but has a high prevalence in developing countries. Regardless of the frequency of occurrence, this disease is a diagnostic problem, and in many cases its treatment causes a significant change in the functionality of the male reproductive system and, consequently, affects the quality of life of this group of patients.