Disturbing scar-like growth on head of penis

Men's health
1

27M, 6’00, 160lbs. Overall healthy except for potential pre-diabetes (which is very well-managed). No medications, don’t drink, smoke or use drugs. Sexually active, but only with my long-term girlfriend.

Two or three months ago, I first noticed a tiny ridge of callous-like skin at the lower “bell end” of the head of my penis. There has been no trauma to the area, and I haven’t been wearing anything new that might apply constant friction to the area. Since then, it’s been growing upward. It isn’t painful, itchy, bloody, dry or uncomfortable in any way, it just looks kind of ugly; this is why I’ve let it go unaddressed for so long.

I visited a urologist last week and he ran a bunch of tests. The results came back negative for syphilis, gonorrhea, chlamydia, ureaplasma and trichomoniasis, but I received a positive for gardnerella. The doc then prescribed me a combination of antibiotics and antifungals and sent me on my way.

The problem is, I have my doubts that gardnerella could be the cause of this. Sure, the bacteria is there, but from what I’ve read, the presence of gardnerella in sexually active men is not uncommon and is usually harmless. When it isn’t harmless, a gardnerella infection in men typically manifests as urethritis, but I’ve had zero symptoms coming from my urethra. I’m more concerned that this might be cancer. I have no family history of cancer, as far as I’m aware, but this still looks worrying to me.

Does anyone else have any ideas about what this might be caused by? Should I seek a second opinion from a different urologist?

2

hi buddy,
so i am pretty sure i have the same condition as you.
for me i did not get such a large patch in the glands but i had more changes on the shaft.
at first i noticed something that looked like dry peeling skin. it progressed to a pinkish patch that eventually spread to the head.
after looking after the skin the changes on the head went away but the shaft still has a pink patch that has white lines in the skin underneath.

i have been researching this condition for a year quite intensivly.

to me it looks like you may well have the same thing, called Lichen Planus.
it can be a very stubborn condition, but potentially harmless…it is something that stays in the system and there is not any great treatments avalible.

however if you get it treated it may go in to remission and not appear again.
it is not an sti, it is not contagious, it is not cancer.

i am currently using steroid cream, and it is very effective in getting the inflamation down for me.
however i have been avoiding using it as it is extremly strong stuff and must be used only for a limited period of time.
i have literally tried every herbal treatment i could find,
i would advise using an oil like borage oil, maybe black seed oil. or even organic sunflour oil daily and keep the skin nourished.
avoid soap and shampoo o n the genitals, only water and light washing products for excema.

steroid cream needs to be perscribed.
i was given clobestarol propionate.

it is considered an auto immune condition, steroid cream is strong and does not ‘cure’ the condition but it supresses it and hopefully you go in to remission, that is what i am hoping for.
have patience, if it is LP then it may take a while to treat.
it could be worth seeing a dermatologist.

i would really apreciate if you can share any update/progression with me on this forum or by priavate message.

i am also taking a high dose of vitamin d as there is some suggestion this could help.
aswell as probiotics, and trying to have a healthy diet etc.

starting with the oils and with the clobestarol once at night has helped alot. my skin was really degrading but now it looks much better.

please keep us updated as it helps is all.

best wishes

3

also did any of these things occur before the skin changes:
change is sex life, for example anal sex?
change in life situation that caused significant stress?
did you contract any virus, or fall sick with anything that effected your nervous system?

4

Hey and thank you so much, reading all of this information was incredibly helpful. Hearing that this might not be contagious (and not cancer) is very relieving. I’ll definitely continue looking into LP and see what else I find. My diet is already very strict and (I would say) pretty healthy due to my pre-diabetes, but I’ll try to follow all of your tips.

To answer your questions:

  • No, no major changes to my sexual habits occurred during this period of time
  • No major stressors have been introduced (in fact, I’m less stressed now than I was last year)
  • Other than a few colds here or there, I haven’t been majorly sick. The only possible change was that I’m pretty sure this began about a month after I received the Moderna COVID vax, but I don’t think that is relevant

I want to ask you a few questions though:

  • How did you get diagnosed with LP? Was there a specific test that was run, or was it through process of elimination that the docs came to this conclusion?
  • Would you recommend any good cleansing products to use down there?
  • Lastly, I hate to ask for d pics, but is there any chance you could DM me a photo of what your condition looked like at its apex? I tried googling, but most of the images look only marginally similar to what I’m experiencing.

Thank you so much once again. I’ll definitely keep you updated, and I’m looking forward to your reply.

5

hi thanks for your reply. I’m happy to hear that you found my message useful. As far as pictures I will try and upload some soon i have a couple on my first posts.. My symptoms do look a little different to yours however lichen planus can present itself in a variety of ways yet since I have been researching this condition for the past year I have viewed every image I feel that is possible to find on the Internet regarding male genital lichen. So for creams and lotions I have spent best part of the last six months experimenting extensively with over 20 different oils and creams. I have now made my own lotion that is a combination of many things. I will share this recipe once I know it’s results. For now I suggest avoiding all soaps and shower gels on genitals. Use shower products only for skin with eczema. Such as Aveeno products. Then I strongly suggest twice a day applying an oil and if you masturbate then use one of these oils . I found borage oil to be my favourite Shea butter is also good some people like coconut oil however for me it is not my preferred oil as I find it a little too strong . this can be used in combination with other oils as well. Sunflower oil is also good, and aloe gel is important, organic or highest quality possible of course. You can use a few drops of tea tree oil in the cream, also hyaluronic acid and even some eczema lotions such as those made by Aveeno could be tried in small quantities.
as far as steroid creams I was prescribed clobestarol steroid cream, this is very strong and should be used with caution. This was prescribed to me by a general practitioner but he was not sure of the diagnosis , I told him I thought it was LP and he didn’t rule it out but he said he couldn’t be sure, so he still did perscribe the cream even though he wasn’t sure however I am sure. You can never be 100% sure as the only diagnosis is made by looking and most doctors don’t really know how to diagnose LP unless it is very obvious and they are well informed . one can do a biopsy but even this may not give definitive results and it could cause much more harm than good as it damages the skin which is the worst thing when you have LP anyway diagnosus will not help much in terms of treatment options.. So I found the steroid cream to help reduce the inflammation and I use that now after avoiding it for a year, but I use it in combination with the oils and I find this is working quite well for me. Currently I am experimenting with a home-made product using dead sea salt. I can at least recommend taking dead sea salt bath or soak in your genitals In salt mix with water for 20 minutes. I hope this is helpful.