Medical Oncologist
CION Cancer Clinics
Penile-sparing surgery: glansectomy and wide excision | CION Cancer Clinics
Penile-sparing surgery removes the cancer from the head or skin of the penis while keeping the shaft. A glansectomy removes the head, called the glans, and covers the end with a thin skin graft from the thigh. A wide excision cuts out a smaller patch with a rim of healthy skin. Both are offered only when the cancer has not grown into the shaft. This page explains what happens and what to expect afterwards. CION Cancer Clinics’ surgical oncologists in Hyderabad can talk this through with you.
MI
Medically reviewed by Dr. Mohammed ImaduddinConsultant Surgical Oncologist · MBBS, MS (General Surgery), MCh (Surgical Oncology) · last reviewed September 2026, next review due September 2027
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On this page
- What is penile-sparing surgery?
- Which penile-sparing operation removes what?
- What happens during a glansectomy?
- Glansectomy and partial penectomy, compared
- What will it look and feel like afterwards?
- Four things men tell us, and what is actually true
- Common questions about glansectomy and penile-sparing surgery
The short answer
What is penile-sparing surgery?
Penile-sparing surgery removes the cancer from the head or skin of the penis while keeping the shaft. A glansectomy removes the head of the penis, called the glans, and covers the end with a thin skin graft. A wide excision cuts out a smaller patch of cancer with a rim of healthy skin around it. Both leave the penis long enough to pass urine standing and, for many men, to have sex.
Who it is offered to
It is offered when the cancer is confined to the glans or the skin, and has not grown into the spongy tissue inside the shaft. The surgeon confirms this with a biopsy and usually an MRI scan before the operation. If the cancer sits on the foreskin alone, a circumcision may be all that is needed and this page does not apply.
Who it does not suit
It is not offered when the cancer has grown into the spongy tissue of the shaft, when it is high grade and growing fast, or when a penile-sparing operation has already been done and the cancer has come back in the same place. In those cases a partial penectomy removes the cancer more safely, and your team will say so.
Your team decides which operation is safe for your cancer. This page explains what the operation involves. It cannot tell you whether you are suitable.Four operations
Which penile-sparing operation removes what?
They differ in how much of the glans is taken. The surgeon chooses on the basis of how much of it the cancer covers and how deep it goes.
Wide local excision
The cancer and a rim of healthy skin are cut out. The wound is stitched closed or covered with a small graft. Used for small cancers on the skin of the glans or shaft.
Glans resurfacing
The surface skin of the glans is peeled away and replaced with a skin graft from the thigh. The glans keeps its shape. Used for pre-cancer or very shallow cancer spread across the surface.
Partial glansectomy
Part of the glans is removed with a margin of healthy tissue. The rest is kept. Used when a cancer sits on one part of the glans and has not gone deep.
Total glansectomy
The whole glans is removed from the end of the shaft. The urine tube is brought out at the new end and a skin graft from the thigh is laid over it to make a new head.
Usually offered for
- Cancer covering much of the glans
- Cancer that has gone into the glans but not the shaft
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistOn the day
What happens during a glansectomy?
Anaesthetic
You are asleep under a general anaesthetic, or numb from the waist down with a spinal injection. The anaesthetist chooses with you on the morning of the operation.
Removing the glans
The surgeon frees the glans from the end of the shaft and removes it with a rim of healthy tissue. The tissue goes to the laboratory to check the margin.
The graft
A thin sheet of skin is shaved from the front of your thigh and stitched over the end of the shaft. The thigh is dressed and heals on its own, like a graze.
The catheter and dressing
A soft tube called a catheter drains urine so the graft is not disturbed. A firm dressing holds the graft in place. Both stay for a few days.
Going home
Most men go home once the dressing has been checked and the catheter removed. You will be shown how to keep the area clean and told when to come back.
Side by side
Glansectomy and partial penectomy, compared
Glansectomy
Partial penectomy
Removes the glans only; the shaft is kept
Removes the glans and part of the shaft
Length is largely kept
The penis is shorter afterwards
For cancer confined to the glans
For cancer that has reached the shaft
Cancer can come back on the kept tissue, so follow-up is closer
Less tissue is kept, so local return is less common
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Recovery
What will it look and feel like afterwards?
The new end of the penis looks different from a natural glans. It is paler, flatter and without the ridge. Over several months the graft softens and takes on more colour. Most men say it looks far better at six months than it did at six days.
Sensation and erections
The grafted skin has less feeling than the glans it replaced, and that feeling changes rather than returns. Erections are usually not affected, because the spongy tissue that makes them is in the shaft, which has been kept. Many men return to sex once the graft has fully healed, and the surgeon will tell you when that is.
The graft itself
A small part of the graft sometimes fails to take and needs longer to heal. This is common and is usually managed with dressings. The thigh donor site is often more sore than the penis in the first week. Keep it clean, keep it dressed and tell the team if it becomes red, hot or smelly.
Cancer can come back on the tissue that was kept. That is why follow-up visits are more frequent after penile-sparing surgery than after a partial penectomy. Do not miss them.Commonly believed
Four things men tell us, and what is actually true
"Keeping the penis means keeping the cancer."
The surgeon removes the cancer with a margin and the laboratory checks that margin. What is kept is tissue the cancer had not reached. Cancer is more likely to come back locally than after a partial penectomy, but it is usually found early at follow-up and treated again.
"A skin graft from the thigh will not work down there."
Thigh skin is used for exactly this purpose all over the world. It takes because the end of the shaft has a good blood supply. Small patches sometimes fail and heal more slowly, which is managed with dressings, not another operation.
"I will not be able to have sex again."
Erections come from the shaft, which is kept. Many men return to sex once healed. Sensation is different and less than before. What changes most is confidence, and that is worth talking about with the team and with your partner.
"The smaller operation is always the better choice."
Only when the cancer is small and shallow enough for it to be safe. If the cancer has reached the shaft, a glansectomy leaves cancer behind. The team recommends the smallest operation that removes all of it, and that is not the same as the smallest operation.
Did you know
The rim of healthy tissue a surgeon needs around a penile cancer is now much smaller than it was a generation ago. That change is the main reason glansectomy is offered today where a partial penectomy would once have been the only option.
Questions we are asked
Common questions about glansectomy and penile-sparing surgery
Will I be able to pass urine standing up?
Usually, yes. The shaft is kept and the urine tube opens at the new end. The stream may spray or go slightly to one side at first, because the tip that used to shape it has gone. Many men sit for the first weeks while it settles, then stand again.
How long will I be in hospital?
Usually a few nights, until the first dressing check and the catheter is out. Some centres do a wide excision as a day case. Ask your team for the typical stay for the operation planned for you, and whether the catheter will come out before you go home or at a clinic visit.
Does the thigh hurt where the skin was taken?
Yes, and often more than the penis does in the first week. It feels like a bad graze and stings when the dressing is changed. It heals from underneath over a few weeks and leaves a paler, slightly shiny patch. Ordinary pain relief prescribed by the team is usually enough.
What if the margin comes back not clear?
The laboratory report says whether cancer cells were found at the edge of what was removed. If they were, the team usually advises removing a little more tissue in a second, smaller operation. Sometimes radiotherapy is used instead. It does not mean the first operation was a mistake.
Will the groin glands be removed at the same time?
That is a separate decision made on separate evidence. Some men with a small glans cancer still need the groin glands sampled, because this cancer spreads there first. Others do not. Ask your surgeon whether groin surgery is planned, and whether it will be done on the same day.
Can the cancer come back after this?
It can, on the tissue that was kept. That is the trade for keeping the shaft. Local return is usually found at follow-up while it is small and is treated again, sometimes with a partial penectomy. Regular check-ups are the safeguard, so keep every appointment even when everything feels fine.
Can I have a glansectomy at CION?
Whether this operation is right for you, and where it is done, depends on your biopsy, your scan and the surgeon's assessment. Call the helpline with your reports and a surgical oncologist will tell you what is possible and where. Ask any centre how often its surgeons perform penile-sparing surgery.
Is it covered by Aarogyasri or my insurance?
Cancer surgery is usually covered under Aarogyasri, CGHS, ECHS and EHS, and most cashless insurers are empanelled at CION. What is covered depends on the scheme and the operation planned, so call the helpline with your card details and we will check before you travel.
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Dr. C. Raghavendra Reddy
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Dr. Bharati Devi Gorantla
MBBS, MD(General Medicine), DM(Medical Oncology)(Adyar,Chennai), ECMO, MRCP SCE(UK)
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Dr. Owais Mohammed
MBBS, MD (General Medicine), DrNB (Medical Oncology), ECMO, MRCP SCE (Medical Oncology) (UK)
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Dr. Muralidhar Muddusetty
MBBS (AIIMS), MS (Surgery) (AIIMS), DNB (Surgical Oncology), MRCS (Edinburgh)
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Dr. Vinay Mamidala
MBBS, MS(General Surgery), M.Ch(Surgical Oncology), FMAS, FARIS(Ongoing)
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Hematologist
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Dr. Vajja Sandeep Kumar
MBBS, MS (General Surgery), DrNB (Surgical Oncology), FALS Oncology
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Sources
- Cancer Research UK — Penile cancer: treatment
- NHS — Penile cancer
- Macmillan Cancer Support — Penile cancer
- National Cancer Institute — Penile Cancer Treatment (PDQ) - Patient Version
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
Keep reading
Related pages
Penile cancer surgery: what your options areEvery operation from circumcision to total penectomyGlans resurfacing and reconstructionHow the new head is made and how it healsPartial penectomy: what is removedThe operation offered when the shaft is involvedFollow-up after penile cancer surgeryWhy check-ups matter more after penile-sparing surgeryWound, stitches and scarsLooking after the graft and the thigh at home
Talk to us
Want to know if a penile-sparing operation is possible?
Send us the biopsy report and the scan, or call the helpline. A surgical oncologist will tell you what the reports mean and what the options are. One helpline serves every CION centre.