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. 2022 Jan 6;33(4):468-474.
doi: 10.4103/joco.joco_113_21. eCollection 2021 Oct-Dec.

Five-Year Experience in Treatment of Retinoblastoma with Intra-Arterial Chemotherapy: A Single-Center Analysis

Fariba Ghassemi  1 , Shima Dehghani  2 , Raziyeh Mahmoudzadeh  1 , Alireza Khodabandeh  1 , Hossein Ghanaati  3 , Gholamreza Termehchi  4
Affiliations

Five-Year Experience in Treatment of Retinoblastoma with Intra-Arterial Chemotherapy: A Single-Center Analysis

Fariba Ghassemi et al. J Curr Ophthalmol. .

Abstract

Purpose: To report our 5-year experience in treating retinoblastoma (RB) with intra-arterial chemotherapy (IAC) as a primary or secondary therapy, without adjuvant intravitreal chemotherapy.

Methods: A retrospective study was conducted on 70 eyes with intraocular RB that were treated with primary or secondary IAC from December 2010-2015. Demographic characteristics, clinical features, tumor control, and treatment complications were compared and reported.

Results: Thirty-seven eyes had received IAC as a secondary therapy after failed/incomplete response to systemic chemotherapy, and 33 eyes had received IAC as a primary treatment. The mean age of patients was 25 ± 8.9 months, and the patients were followed for a mean of 24.5 ± 16.26 months. Overall, enucleation rates were significantly higher in advanced tumors (Group D and E) in both groups (both P < 0.05). The main reason for enucleation in this study group was being unresponsive to treatment (27.4%), with 76% of latter patients having vitreous seeds at the time of enucleation. Enucleation rates did not differ significantly between patients receiving primary (18/33, 54%) or secondary IAC (18/37, 48%) (P = 0.06). In addition, recurrence and complication rates did not differ significantly between eyes receiving IAC as their primary or secondary treatment (P > 0.05).

Conclusion: In primary and secondary treatment of RB with IAC, the main findings that are globe salvage, recurrence, and complication rates were comparable when no adjuvant intravitreal chemotherapy was used.

Keywords: Intra-arterial chemotherapy; Retinoblastoma; Systemic chemotherapy.

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Conflict of interest statement

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
As a success story, a 24-month-old baby with Group C posterior pole retinoblastoma treated with three sessions of intra-arterial chemotherapy (a and b, before and after treatment, respectively)
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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