The eye and the chromosome

Retinoblastoma. Combined treatment of 21 cases. Critical review of the results

The authors report their experience in the treatment of 21 children affected by retinoblastoma. There were 14 bilateral and seven unilateral cases of retinoblastoma; mean age at diagnosis was 16 months in males (16 patients) and 30 months in females (five patients). They were all staged according to Howarth et al. (1980) and treatment was correlated to the various stages. The treatment protocol was determined by a group of co-workers at the University of Padova. Among the 35 affected eyes, 26 were enucleated and the others were treated without surgery. One patient died of cerebral metastases and two patients are affected by a second tumor with an unfavorable prognosis for survival. Two other patients are affected by chronic liver disease, probably due to chemotherapy. The authors confirm the importance of early diagnosis and prompt and effective treatment in children affected by retinoblastoma. They also stress that recently developed genetic techniques allow diagnosis of retinoblastoma even before the symptoms appear.

Prenatal diagnostic techniques. Chorionic villus sampling

Chorionic villus sampling (CVS) is a new prenatal diagnostic technique which is performed in the first trimester of pregnancy. Traditional methods of prenatal diagnosis, including amniocentesis and fetoscopy, must be performed in the midtrimester. In concert with the development of DNA methods of fetal cell analysis, first trimester fetal diagnosis utilizing CVS offers many advantages over traditional mid-trimester techniques. In addition, CVS may potentially allow therapeutic intervention to prevent or ameliorate some congenital defects.

Bilateral optic nerve abnormalities associated with a 4-10 chromosomal translocation

A neonate with ocular abnormalities and a chromosomal aberration is described. The patient demonstrates a typical choroidal coloboma involving the iris ciliary body and choroid of the right eye, bilateral optic pits-coloboma and a karyotype with a 4-10 chromosomal translocation. Although a random occurrence of the ocular phenomena and the chromosomal aberration cannot be ruled out, it is appealing to speculate about the possible association of the ocular colobomata and the chromosomal translocation harbored by this patient.