Background:

Cancer of the penis accounts for less than 1% of all cancers affecting males. Nevertheless, it has a huge impact on the patients that present with it.

Objective:

To report on the quality of life, erectile function, and perception of self-esteem in patients that underwent partial phallectomy due to cancer of the penis.

Materials and methods:

An analytic, cross-sectional study was conducted that included 10 postoperative partial phallectomy patients. They were evaluated through the EORTC-QLQ-30 questionnaire (validated for the Mexican population), the International Index of Erectile Function-Short Form (IIEF-5), and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (SES).

Results:

The quality of life results, evaluated through the EORTC-QLQ-30 questionnaire, were lower than those for the general population in all 10 patients. In the IIEF-5 sexual activity evaluations, 5 of the 10 patients were sexually inactive, one patient had no deterioration of sexual activity, one patient had mild deterioration, and 3 patients had mild-to-moderate deterioration. Self-esteem, evaluated by the SES, was above average in 8 of the 10 patients, average in one patient, and below average in one patient.

Conclusions:

The results of the present study, determined through different scales, indicated that partial phallectomy as treatment for cancer of the penis affected patient quality of life and had repercussions on sexual function. Nevertheless, the self-esteem of the patients, despite their condition, was not affected and was even above average.

        · resumen en Español     · texto en Español     · Español ( pdf )