Locations:
A penectomy is a surgical procedure that removes part of or all of your penis. Healthcare providers most commonly perform the procedure to treat penile cancer. They may need to relocate your urethra so you can pee comfortably. Your recovery depends on many factors, including how much of your penis providers must remove.
Advertisement
Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy
A penectomy (peh-NEK-tuh-mee) is the surgical removal of your penis. A surgeon may remove part of your penis (partial penectomy) or your entire penis (total penectomy). Surgeons typically perform penectomies to treat a condition that affects your penis.
Advertisement
Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy
Penectomy is an effective treatment for penile cancer. Healthcare providers recommend the procedure if penile cancer:
In rare cases, you may need the procedure to treat Fournier’s gangrene or a traumatic injury to your penis.
Penectomy isn’t a common procedure. That’s because penile cancer is relatively rare. Penile cancer affects fewer than 1 in 100,000 males each year in North America and Europe. And healthcare providers may first recommend other cancer treatments before a penectomy. These may include:
Before a penectomy, you’ll meet with healthcare providers. They’ll recommend tests to determine what kind of penile cancer you have and its stage. Tests may include:
Once they get the results of your tests, they’ll discuss whether a partial or total penectomy is best for you.
Healthcare providers will also check your general health. This ensures you’re healthy enough for surgery. It includes taking your vital signs — body temperature, pulse and blood pressure.
Advertisement
It’s important to tell your provider about any prescription or over-the-counter (OTC) medications you take. This includes vitamins and herbal supplements. Some medications, vitamins and supplements can increase your bleeding risk. They can also interact with medications you may need to take after the procedure. You may need to stop taking certain medications for a little while before surgery. But check with your provider before stopping any medications.
You should also tell your provider about any allergies you have. These include:
Your provider will also give you specific directions on eating and drinking before your penectomy. Eating or drinking after midnight the night before your surgery can increase the risk of fluids or food getting into your airways (aspiration). If you must take medications, you should take them with a small sip of water.
In general, your penectomy care team includes:
Your anesthesiologist will put you under (sedate you) with general anesthesia. You won’t be awake, move or feel any pain during the procedure.
Nurses may place you flat on your back (supine position) or on your back with your legs held in the air by stirrups (lithotomy position). They’ll also insert a urinary catheter into your urethra and guide it up to your urinary bladder. The catheter drains pee and also helps your care team locate your urethra during the procedure.
If your urologist performs a partial penectomy, they’ll remove the affected tissue. They’ll leave as much of your shaft as they can. They’ll also do their best to ensure that you can still stand to pee and retain as much sexual function as possible. If they remove the tip of your penis (glans), they may take skin from another area of your body (usually your thigh) to make a new glans. This is a skin graft.
If you need a total penectomy, your urologist will remove your entire penis, including the root (radix). Three masses of erectile tissue make up the root of your penis, and it attaches to your pelvis.
If you’re having a penectomy because of penile cancer, your urologist may remove lymph nodes in your groin to see if cancer has spread.
It depends on many factors, including whether you need a partial or total penectomy. But in general, a penectomy should take less than two hours to complete.
After a penectomy, nurses will cover your incision sites with bandages or skin glue.
The anesthesiologist will stop putting anesthesia in your body. You’ll be conscious (awake) within a few minutes. But you’ll likely feel groggy.
Nurses will then move you to a recovery room. They’ll wait for you to wake up more fully and track your overall health. Once you’re fully awake and alert, they’ll treat your pain. Anesthesia can make some people feel like they may throw up. They may also give you medication to treat it.
Advertisement
Your hospital stay may depend on why you need a penectomy. But in general, after the procedure, you:
Your urologist will reroute your urethra to your perineum (perineal urethrostomy). So, your pee will come out through a new hole in the area between your anus (butthole) and genitals. You’ll need to sit when you pee.
It’s not possible in all total penectomy cases. But there’s a chance your urologist may be able to create a new penis for you. They’ll use skin and tissue from other areas of your body. This procedure is a phalloplasty.
The main benefit of a penectomy is that it’s an effective penile cancer treatment. It usually gives you the best survival rate.
It depends on many factors, including:
Healthcare providers will give you a better idea of what to expect.
Every surgery comes with risks. Possible penectomy risks include:
Advertisement
A penectomy can also have a serious impact on your quality of life. Having a healthy penis is important to your sexual and emotional health. Many males experience mixed feelings after a penectomy. It’s an effective cancer treatment. But changes to the size and appearance of your penis and changes to your peeing habits can affect how you feel. They can affect your feelings of self-confidence, self-image and self-worth. This can cause complications like:
It depends. You can’t have penetrative sexual intercourse after a total penectomy.
If you get a partial penectomy, you may still be able to get an erection, have penetrative sexual intercourse and orgasm. But a partial penectomy may remove some of the most sensitive areas of your penis. These sensitive areas include the head, frenulum and foreskin. A lack of sensitivity can make it difficult to get or maintain an erection that’s hard enough for penetration or masturbation.
It’s important to remember that there are other ways to express your sexuality. Talking to a sex therapist can help you work through your sexual difficulties. This includes discovering other sensitive areas of your body, like your scrotum and prostate.
Advertisement
It’s also a good idea to have open talks with your partner(s) about the best ways to be intimate through nonpenetrative sex. Some examples include kissing, cuddling and rubbing.
Every person recovers at a different rate. Your healthcare provider will give you an idea of what to expect before surgery.
But in general, you should expect to:
Call a healthcare provider if you:
It’s normal to feel a wide range of emotions before any type of surgery. But a penectomy is a treatment in one of the most sensitive areas of your body. You might feel angry, lonely, sad or frustrated. You might feel optimistic. Or you may not feel anything at all. All of these responses are normal.
It’s important to find a urologist who has a lot of experience performing these surgeries and understands what you’re going through. Get as much information as possible before surgery so you know what to expect. It’s also important to have a support system in place that you can lean on. This can be your family and friends. Or you can reach out to support groups and postoperative services for help.
Penile cancer can be curable if caught early. Cleveland Clinic provides the diagnosis, treatment and support you need to keep enjoying life.
Last reviewed on 07/18/2025.
Learn more about the Health Library and our editorial process.
