Introduction: Testicular tumors are frequent in young adults, coinciding with incorporation to military service. The present study evaluates the tumor characteristics, time course and results obtained with the treatments used in our center for this type of neoplasms.
Material and methods: A retrospective longitudinal study was conducted in a cohort of 98 patients with an average age of 28.6 years, subjected to orchiectomy for testicular tumors in our center between 1979 and 2004. Data were collected relating to patient age, tumor characteristics, the outcome of treatment, and the course of the disease.
Results: The right testicle was affected in 61% (with significant differences versus the left side). The most common histological type corresponded to non-seminomatous germ cell tumors (NSGCTs) (65.3%), followed by pure seminomas (27.6%) and non-germinal cell tumors (NGCs) (7.1%). NSGCT was diagnosed at a significantly younger average age (23.2 years) than the other two tumor types. Stage I was the most frequent presentation (58%). Seminomas presented in stage I significantly more often (80%) than the others tumors. The data collected over the 25-year study period showed no significant variations in tumor characteristics. The log-rank test showed a significant difference in terms of patient survival according to the tumor cell line (p = 0.000) and stage (p = 0.000), except between stages I and II, where no significant differences were observed in terms of survival.
Conclusions: Non-seminomatous germ cell tumors (NSGCTs) are the most frequent testicular tumors in young adults. Most neoplasms are diagnosed in early stages, the prognosis being better in the case of seminomas and tumor stages I and II.