Tumor histologic grade is the most important prognostic factor in patients with penile cancer and clinically negative lymph nodes not submitted to regional lymphadenectomy.

INTRODUCTION: The presence and extension of inguinal lymph node metastasis are the main prognostic factors in patients with penile cancer. Physical exam and image exams are not adequate to evaluate inguinal lymph nodes and many patients are submitted to non-therapeutic lymphadenectomies. However, it is known that not all patients with clinically or histologically negative inguinal lymph nodes evolve favorably.

CASUISTIC AND METHODS: the authors evaluated the clinical and pathologic characteristics of 163 patients with penile carcinoma and clinically negative inguinal lymph nodes followed for three or more years and their impact on global survival (GS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) in the 10-year follow-up. Primary pathologic tumor stage (p=0.025) and the presence of high grade of tumor differentiation (p=0.018) were predictive of CSS. The presence of high grade tumor was an independent specific prognostic factor of death risk (RR 14.08; p=0.019).

CONCLUSION: high histologic grade was an independent predictive factor of specific death risk in patients with penile carcinoma and clinically negative lymph nodes followed for three or more years.