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Your GP will ask you questions about your symptoms, and examine your penis. S/he may feel your groin to see if the lymph nodes are swollen. This could be a sign that the cancer has spread – but on the other hand, it could simply be a reaction to infection.
S/he may then send you to see a specialist doctor (a urologist) at a local hospital. There are cancer referral guidelines to help GPs decide who may need to see a specialist, and how quickly.
At hospital you will probably have these tests:
Biopsy
The doctor takes a sample of tissue from the suspected cancer, so that it can be looked at under a microscope. S/he may have to cut away your foreskin to reach it. This procedure may require a general anaesthetic.
MRI scan
The Magnetic Resonance Imaging scan uses strong magnets and radio waves to build up an image of the part of your body doctors want to know more about. To have the scan done, you lie on your back on a couch. The scanning machine is a large tube that is open at both ends.
Once you are ready, the couch starts to move through the tube. You relax and lie still while the scanner takes pictures of you. A special aerial or coil is positioned around the area to be examined, to receive information during the scan
Computerised tomography (CT or CAT scan)
This is a type of x-ray that creates a picture of the inside of the body. You lie on a couch while it passes through a large hollow ring. Doctors can use the CT pictures to see whether the cancer has spread.
