Comparison of primary and secondary enucleation for uveal melanoma

Socket outcomes following enucleation for uveal melanoma: post enucleation socket syndrome can be challenging

PURPOSE

To evaluate socket outcomes of enucleation for uveal melanoma.

METHODS

This study was a retrospective chart review conducted in December 2022 of all patients who underwent enucleation surgery for uveal melanoma between 2010 and 2015 in the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital, to evaluate socket outcomes including completion of revision surgery, type of surgery, and completion of multiple revision surgeries, and potential associations.

RESULTS

Between June 2010 and December 2015, 72 patients underwent enucleation for uveal melanoma in the ocular oncology service, including 25 females and 47 males, mean age 65, range 11-91 years old. There were 68 primary enucleations and 4 secondary enucleations. Complete follow-up data was available for mean 4 years, range 1-11 years. Fourteen patients underwent further surgery, including one exenteration for local recurrence. Oculoplastic surgery (n = 6, 8%), implant exposure repair (n = 3, 6%), and orbit volume expanding surgery (n = 4, 6%) were also performed. Eight patients (11%) underwent one further surgery and five patients (7%) underwent a series of procedures. There was a significant association with younger age at enucleation (age <65) with undergoing further surgery (p = 0.03, Fisher's Exact Test (FET)), and also an association of younger age with undergoing multiple further surgeries (p = 0.02, FET). There was no association found with other predictor variables, including primary versus secondary enucleation status. Most patients (75%) with PESS underwent more than one surgery.

CONCLUSION

Post enucleation surgery 82% of patients did not undergo further surgery, but younger patients were more likely to undergo anophthalmic socket revision or oculoplastic surgery. Management of post enucleation socket syndrome was challenging and usually involved a series of procedures.

Surgical outcomes of unwrapped acrylic orbital implants: A review of 192 patients

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study is to report the results in a series of acrylic orbital implant placements without the use of wrapping material.

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed the records of the patients who underwent enucleation with acrylic orbital implant insertion without scleral wrapping at the Department of Ophthalmology, Poznań University of Medical Sciences, Poland, between 2013 and 2020.

RESULTS

There were 192 patients: 102 women and 90 men, mean age: 60 years (range: 13-90 years). In the majority of cases, the reason for enucleation was uveal melanoma (148 patients-77.1%), followed by secondary glaucoma in 22 patients (11.5%) and painful, phthisical eye in 16 (8.3%). The median follow-up was 23 months (range: 1-96 months). The stability of the implants was satisfactory in the majority of cases, and there were no cases of implant migration identified during the study period. We noted a total of 4 (2%) implant exposures. Other postoperative complaints included eyelid malposition-21 patients (11%), Tenon's capsule thinning (15 patients-7.8%) and post-enucleation eye socket syndrome (PEES)-7 patients (3.6%). The rate of postoperative complications was associated only with a history of previous ocular surgery (P=0.006).

CONCLUSIONS

The stability and functional outcomes of unwrapped acrylic orbital implants in this group of patients were satisfactory during the follow-up period.

Diagnostic methods and therapeutic options of uveal melanoma with emphasis on MR imaging-Part II: treatment indications and complications

Therapy of uveal melanoma aims to preserve the eye and its function and to avoid metastatic dissemination. The treatment choice is difficult and must keep into account several factors; the therapeutic strategy of uveal melanoma should therefore be personalized, sometimes requiring to combine different treatment techniques. Nowadays globe-sparing radiotherapy techniques are often preferred to enucleation. Plaque brachytherapy, the most commonly used eye-preserving therapy, is suitable for small- and medium-sized uveal melanomas. Proton beam radiotherapy is indicated for tumours with noticeable size, challenging shape and location, but is more expensive and less available than brachytherapy. Enucleation is currently restricted to advanced tumours, uveal melanomas with orbital or optic nerve involvement, blind and painful eyes because of treatment-related complications (neovascular glaucoma, chronic inflammatory processes). The effect of proton beam therapy on neoplastic tissue is related to direct cytotoxic action of the radiations, impairment of neoplastic vascular supply and immunologic response. Complications after radiotherapy are frequent and numerous and mainly related to tumour thickness, radiation dose and distance between the tumour and optic nerve. The purpose of this pictorial review is to provide the radiologists with awareness about diagnostic methods and therapeutic options of uveal melanoma. In the present second section, we discuss the therapeutic management of uveal melanoma, describing the main ocular-conserving radiotherapic techniques. We subsequently present an overview of the effects of radiations on neoplastic tissue. Lastly, we review ocular complications following radiotherapy that should be evaluated by radiologists during follow-up MRI examinations.

Enucleation after Stereotactic Radiosurgery in Patients with Uveal Melanoma

INTRODUCTION

In the past enucleation was the treatment of choice for all the patients with uveal melanoma. Nowadays, we prefer glope-sparing treatment modalities, except for large tumors, tumors with extrascleral extension and painful blind eyes. Most of the patients perform radiotherapy or local resection techniques. In Slovak Republic, the only one possibility is a stereotactic radiotherapy on a linear accelerator LINAC. Nevertheless, enucleation after radiotherapy is necessary for some patients. The causes are postradiation complications, mainly neovascular glaucoma, tumor recurrence, tumor progression or patient´s decision.

MATERIAL AND METHODS

The retrospective non-randomised study of 168 eyes of the patients with choroidal or ciliary body melanoma, who performed one-day session stereotactic radiosurgery at the linear accelerator LINAC during period 2007-2016. The data about postradiation complications were analysed based on the medical records of the patients and the data about enucleated eyes based on the histopathological findings.

RESULTS

The occurence of enucleation after radiotherapy in our cohort was 17 % (28 patients), with median time period after radiotherapy 21,5 months. The most common cause was neovascular glaucoma (82 %), then tumor progression (14 %) and patient´s decision (4 %). The most common histopathological finding was spindle-cell melanoma.

DISCUSSION

Others authors describe similar enucleation rate and causes. The histopathological findings indentified more viable melanoma cells in eyes enucleated for tumor progression in comparison with enucleation for other causes. Enucleation may be more difficult and the occurence of postoperative complications can be higher in the eyes after radiotherapy rather than primary enucleation.

CONCLUSION

The management of the patients with uveal melanoma is difficult, and requires the cooperation of ophthalmologist, oncologist, radiation physicist and pathologist. Even if we make effort to preserve the eye, enucleation after radiotherapy is necessary in some patients.