RESUMO
BACKGROUND: The incidence of testicular cancers has been increasing in many populations over the past decades and concerns have been expressed about the possible decrease in semen quality in the period. It may account for one of the factors responsible for increasing male infertility in Ilorin, Nigeria. OBJECTIVE: To find out the incidence, age distribution clinical presentation, duration before presentation and the occurrence of various Histopathological subtypes of testicular tumours in Ilorin. DESIGN: A retrospective study. SETTING: A teaching hospital (University of Ilorin). PATIENTS: Testicular biopsies were done on patients presenting at the hospital with suspected cases of malignancies. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All consecutive cases of testicular malignancies diagnosed in the department of pathology, university of Ilorin Teaching Hospital, during the period of thirteen years (1990-2003) were included in this study. Relevant clinical details such as age, clinical presentation and side of involvement of the testis were also recorded. The slide preparations of this sample were retrieved and reviewed. RESULT: During the span of thirteen years (1990-2003), testicular cancers accounted for 0.05% of all sample received and 0.14% of the male biopsies. Most of the diagnosed cases were in the first decades of life and are mainly germ cells tumours of which yolk sac tumours are commonest subtypes. CONCLUSION: Incidence of testicular cancers is still low in this environment and may not account for major contributory factors in male infertility in Ilorin.