What are the other Names for this Condition? (Also known as/Synonyms)

• Urethral Accessary Gland Adenocarcinoma
• Urethral Skene Gland Carcinoma

What is Skene Gland Carcinoma of the Urethra? (Definition/Background Information)

• Skene Gland Carcinoma of the Urethra is an exceedingly rare malignant tumor that arises in the female urethra
• The Skene glands are located near the urethra, above the vaginal opening. It is considered as the source of female ejaculation during sexual activity. The gland is likened to the male prostate gland
• According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the tumor is classified as a urethral accessory gland carcinoma

Incidence:

• The tumors are extremely rare. It mostly occurs in menopausal woman
• Studies have shown that the tumors arise in the 46-91 years’ age group (post menopause)
• All races and ethnic groups are at risk

Risk factors and cause: Unknown

• Some reports have shown that the tumors have loss of heterozygosity (LOH) and mutations in PTEN genes
• However, such molecular aberrations have not been well-characterized

Signs and symptoms:

• Skene Gland Carcinoma of the Urethra is usually localized to the distal urethra and known to arise from the Skene glands
• The location of tumors can also be in the anterior vaginal walls or urinary bladder neck
• In many cases, the tumor may be asymptomatic causing no signs and symptoms
• Hematuria or the presence of blood in urine
• Urinary urgency
• The tumor size ranges from 1 cm to 3.5 cm (along its greatest dimension); it usually occurs as a polypoid mass

Diagnosis:

• Diagnosis is made through biopsy of the tumor and examination under the microscope by a pathologist
• Since the tumor arises from the Skene glands that are anatomically female counterparts to the male prostate gland, these tumors can cause elevated prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in blood. Hence, blood tests for PSA will be helpful in not only detecting the tumor, but in also monitoring the tumor for tumor recurrences after treatment has been completed

Complication:

• Emotional stress
• Tumor recurrence following surgery
• A case report of metastasis to the inguinal lymph nodes has been documented

Treatment:

• The staging of the tumor is performed according to AJCC classification
• Surgical resection of the tumor
• After tumor excision, the patient can be followed up with periodic PSA level screening to detect tumor recurrences. This is usually helpful if there was an elevated PSA documented at the time of diagnosis of the tumor

Prevention: Presently, it is not possible to prevent the formation of this tumor.

Prognosis:

• Since the tumor is exceedingly rare, the prognosis of the tumor is not well-characterized
• In a vast majority of cases, the prognosis is based on the stage of the tumor. Lower stage tumors have better prognosis than higher stage tumors