Combined surgical and chemotherapy treatment for invasive primary urethral cancer: a case presentation

Abstract Background The European Association of Urology (EAU) defines primary urethral carcinoma (PUC) as a carcinoma that arises in the urethra without a previous diagnosis of carcinoma elsewhere in the urinary system. It is considered as a rare cancer, accounting for less than 1% of all malignant tumors and 5% of malignant tumors of the urinary system. The difficulty in diagnosis and its rarity can lead to delayed diagnosis and decreased survival. We think that a case report to be made in the literature for this rare disease with no consensus on treatment will contribute to disease management. Case presentation In this article, we describe the diagnosis and treatment process of a 75-year-old patient who was diagnosed with primary urethral cancer and had urethral discharge and difficulty in urination. The biopsy result from the suspected hyperemic area in the urethra in cystourethroscopy was primary urethral cancer. Urethrectomy followed by urethroplasty was performed on the patient's 2-cm primary urethral cancerous tissue. In the postoperative first month, an F-18 FDG whole-body PET scan for oncological evaluation showed increased pathological F-18 FDG uptake in the periphery of the mass in the penile urethra and indistinguishable boundaries from the prostatic urethra. After this, adjuvant gemcitabine and carboplatin therapy was planned by the oncology team. Conclusions Based on our outcome in this case, we believe that chemotherapy combined with surgery increases the chance of successful treatment in locally advanced urethral cancer.