PDT may be effective for choroidal metastasis treatment
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Photodynamic therapy controls tumors and preserves vision in some patients with choroidal metastases, according to a systematic review.
PDT may be an alternative to radiation treatment, which is effective but requires hospital visits or surgery, with potential sight-threatening side effects. PDT uses a single laser treatment and has advantages in time requirements and safety.
The study authors identified 52 tumors in 40 eyes of 34 patients. The mean tumor thickness was 1.9 mm, and the mean largest basal diameter was 8.2 mm. After 1.4 PDT treatment visits on average, tumor thickness decreased to 1 mm (P < .0001). In addition, central macular thickness decreased from a mean of 454 µm before treatment to 289 µm after treatment (P = .03). Subretinal fluid resolved in 75% of eyes, and 82% of tumors had reduced thickness, according to the study.
Seventy-eight percent of eyes had stable or improved vision after PDT treatment, with no reports of adverse events. The treatment was effective in lung adenocarcinoma and breast carcinoma, the most common causes of choroidal metastases.
“These data show clear evidence that PDT is a safe, simple and efficacious option available to ophthalmologists,” Minh T. Nguyen, MD, and Andrew W. Stacey, MD, of the University of Washington, wrote. “Given these results, we recommend that PDT be strongly considered as a potential treatment for eyes with few and small choroidal metastasis in the posterior pole.”
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