Testicular tumor arising from an intra-abdominal undescended testis in a 1-year-old child: a case report and literature review

Undescended testis — known as cryptorchidism — is one of the most common congenital abnormalities observed in boys, and is one of the few known risk factors for testicular cancer. The key factors that contribute to the occurrence of cryptorchidism remain elusive and a broad range of putative risk factors have been evaluated, but their plausibility is still in question.

Cryptorchidism is one of the most common birth defects in male children, and it has a potential impact on future health. It is the best-characterized risk factor for reduced fertility and testicular cancer. However, the etiology of cryptorchidism remains largely unknown. In the literature, we find different opinions and theories on this topic. Probably, the etiology is multifactorial, and hormonal, genetic and environmental factors may regulate testicular development and descent from intra-abdominal location into the bottom of the scrotum. The descent of the testis is a complex, two-stage process. A critical role in testicular descent has been attributed to androgens, insulin-like hormone 3 (insl3) and anti-Müllerian hormone. It is believed that interaction between Leydig and Sertoli cells may cause impaired spermatogenesis. Based on recent knowledge of germ cell development, it is believed that the best treatment for undescended testis is orchiopexy between 6th and 12th month of life. Long follow-up studies are needed to focus on the effect of this recommendation.

Prepubertal testicular tumors are rare in children. We aim to present clinical and histological features of prepubertal testicular tumors through the analysis of the long-term experiences of a single medical center of China.