Sebaceous Cyst on Penis

I'm 25 and have a sebaceous cyst on the shaft of my penis, which my dr has referred for me to get removed. Can anyone give me a detailed account of the procedure and recovery?

What does the procedure involve, where does the local anesthetic get injected, did it hurt, how long was the procedure? Was their stitches? How was the recovery, were there problems with the stitches in that area with erections? How long did it take to heal? How long were u "out of action" was there any scarring? A lot of questions I know, but any info is appreciated.

hi michael,

my boyfriend had the exact same thing for nearly a year before doctors eventually agreed to surgically remove it. They refused at first until he said it was getting him down and we had a non existent sex life. we were basically nuns 

He went for pre op and was told that he would be awake during whole procedure, like you he was a bit hesitant as to where the needle was going to numb said area , he requested he be knocked out for it and just said he had the biggest phobia of needles and there would be no way he would be able to be awake during it. After insisting a bit more they agreed to give him a general anesthetic.

Op was literally 15 minutes, scaring is no more than a cm on his shaft, just one small incision for them to remove it, he was a bit sore after it but said it wasnt as sore as he'd thought it would be, (this is a guy who has to lie down for 5 hours after stubbing a toe). He was fine after 3 days just a bit tender.

Got surtures out after 9 days and by day 14 

Dont worry about it, and if your not sure about being awake during it, just request to be put to sleep for it, let me know how you get on and i hope any info above helps you out in some way x

Thanks. Getting it done this week. It's an in room procedure so don't think I have the option of a general. Will let you know how it goes.

ah okay, dont worry about it, hope all goes well.

good luck x 

I went and had mine surgically removed yesterday. The cyst I had was quite small prob less than 1cm and was located on the under side of the shaft.

Just thought I'd give a detailed account since there's no much info around about this.

It was done at an in rooms procedure not in a hospital. I arrived, went into the room and sat on the chair. Dr told assistant that she wasn't required, due to the procedure being quite simple and for privacy reasons.

Dr positioned chair and asked me to pull down pants and underwear so area was exposed. Placed that surgical paper towel stuff over legs and under scrotum and another across the abdomen area, pretty much just leaving penis area exposed. Explained what he was going to be doing and then started.

First up was administering the local anesthetic. I was initially worried about this but was fine. I could barely feel the first needle, and after that it was numb and I didn't feel the following injections. I think he administered 4 injections into the skin directly around the cyst. Then went around and administered another 4 in the same areas. Waited for 5 mins for the anesthetic to kick in, tested the area and I said I couldn't feel anything so moved on to the next step.

He stuck down the surgical pad which is basically a sterile pad with a hole cut in to which my penis wen through. He cleaned the area and put betadine all over the penis, and then marked up where he was going to cut.

I looked away for the most part while the procedure was being done. The actual cutting part literally only took a couple of minutes. He removed the entire cyst intact and quite easily.

He then stitched the incision. I didn't get told how many stitches I got, but there were some internal and external stitches. I was surprise about the stitches due to the small size of the cyst, I wasn't even sure if I would have needed stitches. The stitches took about 5-10minutes.

He then applied tape over the stitches and water proof dressing pretty much a big bandaid.

All up from the time I got into the seat to the time I left was about 30mins. About 10mins prep and anesthetic, 5mins cutting and 10mins stitches and dressing.

The Dr was really cool and the procedure wasn't as awkward as I expected. I was more nervous in the lead up, but was fairly relaxed once I was sitting in the chair.

External stitches take up to 5 days to dissolve, internal stitches take up to 6 weeks! 😩 He said no sex or sports etc for 4 weeks. I wasn't expecting the recovering process to take so long. I thought maybe a week and then it would be pretty much back to normal. But no.

He said that the skin might take a few months to get back into shape, said something about the internal stitches were anchored to some tissue so I might be able to feel a lump in there for a few weeks and that the incision may not look even now but it should stretch back into shape in a few months, which I am a bit worried about. I went through this procedure to get rid of a small lump, I don't want it replaced with another lump or ugly scar. I will see how it progresses though.

The anesthetic lasted for about 5 hours, after which it started to sting, almost like burning. Took two panadine forte that he prescribed, but that didn't really make any difference, so it made for a restless nights sleep last night. This morning I took another two panadine forte and again didn't seem to stop the stinging feeling, not unbearable but can feel it. He also gave me 5 days worth of antibiotics to take to prevent any infection.

Have to go back for a follow up appointment in 7 days, at which time he will take the dressing off (if it hasn't fallen off beforehand).

I had try to subtly ask about the possibility of the stitches being a problem with erections through the night but he didn't really give an answer. Haven't had that problem as yet, probably cause it's still a little painful at the moment.

Hi,

Glad the procedure went well and its over with.

Im not sure exactly but going by my bf procedure he also had a small lump after the procedure due to dissolving stiches. It did take longer to go away maybe an extra 5 weeks but it did disappear, as for the scarring, it did look a mess at first but now the scar is about a cm long wouldnt even know it was there unless you were looking for it. Although the lump was still there it didnt interfere sexually or when he was erect.

At first after 2 weeks he was hesitant about being erect because he said it felt tight as if it might tear, first few times he was erect it didnt last long, just for fear that it was going to tear. he was also told 4-6 weeks before getting jiggy with it again, but in all honesty after about 3 and half weeks and him getting over the fear of it tearing he was fine. 

As for the pain, he was given solpadol only and antibiotics at first but phoned and requested something stronger due to sleepless nights.

Im glad its all by with for you and hope any info ive given is of any help 

Happy Recovery x 

 

Thanks for the info, was a great help! Hard to find info about procedures like this, and doctors don't seem to offer much info on the matter.

Just wish the recovering wasn't as long as it was....seems so long for such a small cyst/problem.

Yeah your right, there wasnt any info on it when he went in either, and the doctors were quite evasive when asking about personal issues etc after the op.

The recovering is a bit of a lengthy process for such a small issue but worth it in the end, i suppose recovery is different for everyone just depends on yourself. Hopefully its a speedy recovery for you, doesnt usually take as long as doctors say, think its just precautionary timescales they give.  x

 

Will keep an update for anyone else that might come across this post and have a similar issue.

So it's day 4, don't have any pain at all now. I only used the panadine forte for the first and second night (didn't really make much difference) and haven't used any pain relief since. I have a fairly good tolerance to pain, but I don't feel any at all now.

Dr said to leave the surgical dressing on until my appointment with him in 4 days time. Can see blood on the dressing it so it seems weird that I don't have to change it, but I guess that's what the antibiotics are for.

Haven't had any issues with erections and the stitches as none have occurred, probably due to the big ass surgical dressing stuck on it.

Will update again after I get the dressing taken off by the Dr next week. By then the external stitches should have completely dissolved.

Its good that you've no pain in such a short time of recovery, considering where it is.

As for the big ass dressing , it will no doubt come off on its own before your appointment, they usually give you gauze home to change if needed, it prob wont matter if its on or off as long as the wound is kept clean.

Hope all goes well! x

Yeh Dr was saying he didn't expect the dressing to stay on 24hours, and gave me a cream to apply if the dressing came off. 5 days in and the dressing is still on strong. I emailed to confirm that he wants me

to keep it on til the next appointment, he said yes, which I still find weird, I always thought that dressings needed to be replaced quite frequently. Oh well will find out in 3 more days I guess.

Thanks

Yeah it is rather weird, especially if you say you can see blood through the big ass dressing might be a bit sore when taking it off with it being on so long. 

If its loose might be best taking it off giving it a clean and applying the cream,and seeing if it looks alright, stitches etc, if its still on quite firm just leave it.x  

 

Yeh it's still fairly well stuck on there, so I might wait for the dr to take it off, I also thought it might hurt taking it off after it being on for so long. Maybe he knows a less painful way to remove it. i am kinda keen to see how it has healed, hopefully better than expected. Still kinda worried about what I have read about some internal dissolving stitches, things about them not dissolving and hanging around in there for long periods of time and being able to be felt under the skin. Hopefully all good thou.

Heres hoping he doesnt just rip it off like a plaster  im sure you'll be fine. 

Wouldnt worry too much about the dissolving stitches, although they do take a bit longer sometimes it shouldnt affect sexual encounters. Also some folks think stitches havent dissolved and its actually scar tissue, it does smooth out fairly quick though. 

Docs always say, a healthy blood flow to the affected area increases healing, so once the dressings off and it feels alright get bumping uglies with the mrs, use the 'its helping me heal quicker' excuse  (thats true btw!) 

Nothing ventured nothing gained as they say x

One week later, I went back to get dressing taken off, and DR got the top dressing off and then decided to leave the bottom layer on as it was pretty well stuck on, and felt like it was starting to pull apart the area the stitches had been holding together when he tried to remove it. He said the other dressing will come off in its own time. He said once that comes off to put a strip of some other dressing on, and once that comes off it should be fine. He thinks it is half way healed already, not sure how he came to that conclusion when he couldn't see through the dressing.

He said the internal anchor stitches will take at least another 5 weeks to dissolve so I will be able to feel them under the skin for a while yet. I can't feel them now thou due to the dressing staying on. Due to some of the horror stories I've read about internal stitches not dissolving I asked that they would def 100% dissolve and he said yes, but I maybe feel a small bit of scar tissue under the skin when they go. I said I didn't want to trade one lump for another and he said that if there was a small bump to massage it or "use it", it being my penis. Lol. I'm not sure how that helps but will def give it a go. Hopefully it all heals without any drama - in 5 weeks time.

He said no "contact sport" for another 3 weeks, I think he was meaning sex but wanted to sound polite.

Got erect a couple of times in the past few days, and stitches actually didn't feel like splitting and wasn't painful, so maybe they have some element of stretch to them. Dr didn't mention anything about this, he is a plastic surgeon that said he doesn't have much experience dealing with cysts on penis' so I'm not sure if he knew what sort of information would be handy or not.

One week later, I went back to get dressing taken off, and DR got the top dressing off and then decided to leave the bottom layer on as it was pretty well stuck on, and felt like it was starting to pull apart the area the stitches had been holding together when he tried to remove it. He said the other dressing will come off in its own time. He said once that comes off to put a strip of some other dressing on, and once that comes off it should be fine. He thinks it is half way healed already, not sure how he came to that conclusion when he couldn't see through the dressing.

He said the internal anchor stitches will take at least another 5 weeks to dissolve so I will be able to feel them under the skin for a while yet. I can't feel them now thou due to the dressing staying on. Due to some of the horror stories I've read about internal stitches not dissolving I asked that they would def 100% dissolve and he said yes, but I maybe feel a small bit of scar tissue under the skin when they go. I said I didn't want to trade one lump for another and he said that if there was a small bump to massage it or "use it", it being my penis. Lol. I'm not sure how that helps but will def give it a go. Hopefully it all heals without any drama - in 5 weeks time.

He said no "contact sport" for another 3 weeks, I think he was meaning sex but wanted to sound polite.

Got erect a couple of times in the past few days, and stitches actually didn't feel like splitting and wasn't painful, so maybe they have some element of stretch to them. Dr didn't mention anything about this, he is a plastic surgeon that said he doesn't have much experience dealing with cysts on penis' so I'm not sure if he knew what sort of information would be handy or not.

Hi michael, glad it went ok . if the dressings bothering you in anyway id advise maybe going into a tepid bath to loosen it a bit, and reduce any aggro in taking it off.

The stitches do dissolve eventually but like i said, it is mistaken for scar tissue and does smooth out,if it bothers you try using bio oil to smooth it out if it takes any longer than the doctors timescales. 

Its good that youve no pain when hard, thats always a good sign and id agree it means that your healing well.

Maybe do as he says with the 'contact sport' though, just incase any problems do arise.

Chin up! 5 weeks will fly by x 

 

Haha yep I'm def going to take his advice on refraining from contact sport for another 3 weeks! I'd rather be a bit cautious and heal properly than jeopardize it in any way.

Yeah, probably for the best, Happy recovering  x

Finally the second part of the original dressing came off last night, as you mentioned about ur BFs operation, mine too looks pretty banged up at the moment also, external stitches are still visible (although dr mentioned they would have dissolved in 5 days) and incision line looks heaps crooked (dr also said this should straighten up over time). Have put the new dressing on, will see how it looks once this comes off.