Minimal exposure (one or two cycles) of intra-arterial chemotherapy in the management of retinoblastoma

Abstract

Purpose: To assess the efficacy of less than 3 cycles of intra-arterial chemotherapy (IAC) for retinoblastoma.

Design: Retrospective, nonrandomized, interventional case series.

Participants: Eight patients.

Intervention: Intra-arterial chemotherapy.

Main outcome measures: Tumor control and globe salvage.

Results: Eight patients received fewer than 3 cycles of IAC for retinoblastoma because there was complete tumor control with no residual viable tumor (n = 7) or poor response (n = 1) with little hope that further therapy would benefit the patient. In 3 cases, additional vascular compromise precluded further IAC. The treatment was primary in 6 cases and secondary after failure of other treatment in 2 cases. The 8 eyes were classified (International Classification of Retinoblastoma) as group C (n = 2), group D (n = 3), group E (n = 1), and secondary treatment (n = 2). At initial examination, the main tumor showed a mean basal diameter of 16 mm, a thickness of 8.6 mm, vitreous seeds (n = 2), subretinal seeds (n = 6), and iris neovascularization (n = 1). Three patients were treated with a single cycle of IAC, and 5 patients were treated with 2 cycles of IAC. After IAC, complete tumor response was found in 7 eyes (88%) and partial response was found in 1 eye (13%). Over a mean of 13 months follow-up, there was intraretinal tumor recurrence (n = 1), subretinal seed recurrence (n = 1), and no case of vitreous seed recurrence. Globe salvage was achieved in 2 of 2 group C eyes (100%), 3 of 3 group D eyes (100%), 0 of 1 group E eye (0%), and 1 of 2 secondary treatment eyes (50%). Globe salvage was achieved in 6 of 8 eyes (75%), and 2 of 8 eyes (25%) required enucleation.

Conclusions: One or 2 cycles of IAC can be sufficient for selected eyes with group C or D retinoblastoma, with remarkable tumor control.

Financial disclosure(s): The author(s) have no proprietary or commercial interest in any materials discussed in this article.