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Original article
Clinicopathological and molecular study of penile melanoma
  1. J D Oxley1,
  2. C Corbishley2,
  3. L Down3,
  4. N Watkin4,
  5. D Dickerson5,
  6. N A C S Wong6
  1. 1Department of Cellular Pathology, North Bristol NHS Trust, Bristol, UK
  2. 2Department of Histopathology, St George's Hospital, London, UK
  3. 3School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
  4. 4Department of Urology, St George's Hospital, London, UK
  5. 5Bristol Urological Institute, North Bristol NHS Trust, Bristol, UK
  6. 6Department of Histopathology, University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, Bristol, UK
  1. Correspondence to Dr Jon Oxley, Consultant in Cellular Pathology, Department of Cellular Pathology, North Bristol NHS Trust, Southmead Hospital, Westbury on Trym, Bristol BS10 5NB, UK; jon.oxley{at}nbt.nhs.uk

Abstract

Aims To examine the clinicopathological features of a series of penile melanomas and screen for mutations in the BRAF and KIT genes, which are seen in melanomas from other sites.

Methods and results 12 patients with penile melanoma were identified over a 10-year period in two supra-regional networks in the UK. The 2- and 5-year survival was 61% and 20%, respectively. Half the patients had lymph node involvement at presentation; this was a poor prognostic indicator. KIT exons 11, 13, 17 and 18, and BRAF codons 600 and 601 were analysed for mutations by Sanger sequencing and pyrosequencing, respectively. None of the tumours showed either KIT mutations or the BRAF V600E mutation.

Conclusion Penile melanomas are extremely rare and have a similar prognosis to melanomas elsewhere, but they often present late, leading to a poor outcome. The mutations seen in melanomas from other sites appear to be rarely present in these tumours.

  • Penis
  • melanoma
  • BRAF
  • KIT
  • melanocytic lesions
  • prostate
  • dermatopathology

https://doi.org/10.1136/jclinpath-2011-200344

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    Footnotes

    • Competing interests None.

    • Ethics approval Ethics approval was provided by North Bristol NHS Trust.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.