Although testicular cancer accounts for only 1 percent of all tumors in males, it is the most common malignancy in males between 15 and 34 years of age. Cryptorchidism is the most significant risk factor for testicular cancer, increasing the risk up to 11-fold. A painless testicular mass is the classic presentation for testicular cancer, although a number of patients present with diffuse pain or swelling. Ultrasonography may be helpful in confirming the presence of a scrotal mass within the testicle. Intratesticular masses are considered malignant until proved otherwise. Radical orchiectomy is the treatment for the primary tumor. Staging of disease is based on tumor histology, serum tumor markers and presence of lymph-node or other metastatic disease. Depending on the stage of disease, further treatment may include observation, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or surgery. Survival rates in patients with testicular cancer have improved dramatically in the past 20 years and now exceed 90 percent overall.

Testicular cancer accounts for only about 1 percent of all cancers in males. It is, however, the most common tumor in males between 15 and 34 years of age.¹ About 7,600 cases were expected in the United States in 1998,² or about 4.2 cases per 100,000 males.³ Incidence rates vary across the globe, with higher rates in Scandinavia and Germany and lower rates in Asia and Africa.

The incidence of testicular cancer in the United States has almost doubled since the 1930s and continues to climb, while more effective treatments have led to a decline in mortality^3,4 (Figure 1³). The survival rate in 1963 was 63 percent²; the five-year survival rate now exceeds 95 percent.³

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