Internal eye wall resection of uveal tumors: long-term evaluation

Abstract

The authors report five cases of uveal tumors managed with internal eye wall resection and evaluate the long-term results. Patient age varied from 31 to 61 years. Four patients were female and one was male. Uveal tumors involved ciliary body and choroid in three patients and choroid alone in the other two. Histopathological examination demonstrated three uveal melanomas, one leiomyoma, and one meduloepithelioma. The largest tumor diameter ranged from 8 to 15 mm and tumor thickness from 5 to 11 mm. Follow-up of the patients was over a period of 6 to 23 years. Final visual acuity was 20/20 in 3 patients and 20/200 in one patient, and in the fifth patient, the affected eye was enucleated. No cases of metastatic disease or local recurrence of the tumor were observed, suggesting that internal eye wall resection is a valid alternative for the treatment of selected cases of uveal tumors.