Vitiligo on the penis, or something else?

Hello, I am 32 years old and half Chinese and half Filipino. My skin is a very light shade of brown, except for my genitals which are a much darker shade of brown. I have masturbated almost every day since I was a teenager, sometimes 2 or 3 times a day even, but it wasn't until recently that several light patches have appeared on my penis.

These patches are about the same color as normal untanned skin on the rest of my body but contrast sharply against the dark brown skin of my genitals.  At first, I thought it might be Vitiligo, but then I realized it might be related to masturbation.  The reason why I believe that is because the patches are oval shaped and are located where I usually put pressure with my thumb when I masturbate.  There are 2 large oval shaped patches, about 3/4" long and 1/4" high on the top of my penis on the shaft near the head, and one small round patch 1/8" in diameter near the base of my penis also on the top side.  If I recall correctly, there was only 1 large oval patch near the head when I first noticed, then I started masturbating with my thumb slightly to the right of it and the second patch developed there, then I started masturbating with my thumb near the base of my penis when that third small round patch appeared.

I have since stopped rubbing the top side of my penis when I masturbate, but those light patches have not faded, although they have not grown larger in size either.  I have never used any sort of lubrication when I masturbate, although I would say I do not do it very vigorously, usually it is just a firm rubbing of the most sensitive areas.

Are there any experts out there that might know what these light patches are or how to get rid of them? I didn't think it was possible to rub the pigmentation off your penis, but that seems like what has happened to me.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
Rubbing or masturbation cannot cause hypopigmentation. From the symptoms the possibility of vitiligo needs to be ruled out. It is a pigmentation disorder in which melanocytes (the cells that make pigment) in the skin are destroyed. As a result, white patches appear on the skin in different parts of the body. Diagnosis can be confirmed by external examination, blood tests to check skin cell count  for melanocytes and biopsy of the skin patches.

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your dermatologist. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing