Skip to main content
An official website of the United States government
Español
Government Funding Lapse
Because of a lapse in government funding, the information on this website may not be up to date, transactions submitted via the website may not be processed, and the agency may not be able to respond to inquiries until appropriations are enacted.

The NIH Clinical Center (the research hospital of NIH) is open. For more details about its operating status, please visit cc.nih.gov.

Updates regarding government operating status and resumption of normal operations can be found at opm.gov.

proximal urethra

(PROK-sih-mul yoo-REE-thruh)
The part of the urethra closest to the inside of the body. The urethra is the tube through which urine leaves the body. In women, the proximal urethra is the part near the bladder and in men it is the part that goes through the prostate gland.
Distal and proximal urethra. Drawing on the left shows the female proximal and distal urethra; also shown are the bladder filled with urine, the ureters, and the uterus. Cross-section drawing on the right shows the male proximal and distal urethra. Also shown are the rectum, prostate gland, penis, and testis.Enlarge this image in new window
Anatomy of the distal and proximal urethra. Urine flows out of the bladder and leaves the body through the urethra. The part of the urethra that is closest to the bladder is called the proximal urethra. The part that is closest to where the urine leaves the body is called the distal urethra. The urethra is about 8 inches long in men and about 1½ inches long in women.
Search NCI's Dictionary of Cancer Terms