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Penile Sarcomatoid Squamous Cell Carcinoma (PSSCC)

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Pathology

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Pathology ((EP))

  • 43 Accesses

Synonyms

Carcinosarcoma; Metaplastic carcinoma; Spindle cell carcinoma

Definition

Sarcomatoid carcinoma (PSSCC) of the penis is an HPV-unrelated distinct variant of squamous cell carcinoma, characterized by prominent spindle cell component that constitute at least 30% of the tumors.

Clinical Features

  • Incidence

    PSSCC accounts for approximately 4% of penile carcinomas.

  • Age

    PSSCC preferentially affects the glans of patients in the 6th decade.

  • Sex

    Male.

  • Site

    PSSCCs preferentially originate from glans, often extending to coronal sulcus and foreskin.

  • Treatment

    Penectomy

  • Outcome

    It could occur after recurrence of an usual squamous cell carcinoma, or de novo but, whatever is the clinical history, patients have a poor prognosis, and the survival is usually short (less than 1 year) (Velazquez et al. 2005). Patients may present initially with regional and systemic metastases. The lymphnode metastasis rate is very high (75–89%) and local and systemic recurrence is common (67%). Mortality varies...

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References and Further Reading

  • Chaux, A., Reuter, V., Lezcano, C., Velazquez, E. F., Torres, J., & Cubilla, A. L. (2009). Comparison of morphologic features and outcome of resected recurrent and nonrecurrent squamous cell carcinoma of the penis: A study of 81 cases. The American Journal of Surgical Pathology, 33(9), 1299–1306.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Velazquez, E. F., Soskin, A., Bock, A., Codas, R., Barreto, J. E., & Cubilla, A. L. (2004). Positive resection margins in partial penectomies: Sites of involvement and proposal of local routes of spread of penile squamous cell carcinoma. The American Journal of Surgical Pathology, 28(3), 384–389.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Velazquez, E. F., Melamed, J., Barreto, J. E., Aguero, F., & Cubilla, A. L. (2005). Sarcomatoid carcinoma of the penis: A clinicopathologic study of 15 cases. The American Journal of Surgical Pathology, 29(9), 1152–1158.

    Article  Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Uropathology Unit, Department of Pathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori di Milano, Milan, Italy

    Maurizio Colecchia

  2. Department of Pathology, Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori di Milano, Milan, Italy

    Alessia Bertolotti

Authors
  1. Maurizio Colecchia
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  2. Alessia Bertolotti
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maurizio Colecchia .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. NIJMEGEN, The Netherlands

    J.H.J.M. van Krieken

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Colecchia, M., Bertolotti, A. (2019). Penile Sarcomatoid Squamous Cell Carcinoma (PSSCC). In: van Krieken, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Pathology. Encyclopedia of Pathology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28845-1_4883-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28845-1_4883-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-28845-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-28845-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference MedicineReference Module Medicine

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