Ocular Oncology News

Patients who underwent an organ transplant and were diagnosed with conjunctival squamous cell carcinoma presented with greater tumor thickness and larger basal diameter compared with patients who did not undergo an organ transplant.

The majority of patients with choroidal melanoma treated with AU-011 have maintained vision and experienced tumor control and reduced growth rate, according to interim results of a phase 1b/2 open-label clinical trial.

Clinical outcomes for patients with malignancies have improved in the past decade, in part due to the emergence of VEGF inhibitors.

PHILADELPHIA — Ocular melanoma patients who received prophylactic bevacizumab with plaque radiotherapy experienced significantly better visual acuity outcomes than control patients who did not receive bevacizumab, according to a speaker here.

Patients treated with iodine-125 brachytherapy for uveal melanoma could have a substantial risk for developing open-angle or neovascular glaucoma.

As a retina specialist, my busy private practice sees a wide spectrum of the patient population. We have a significant number of patients on therapies for systemic conditions. These conditions can have multiple side effects on the eye; therefore, we are required to continually monitor these patients for toxicities.

Drugs that treat systemic diseases can be lifesaving, but when these drugs lead to poor ocular health or vision, the treatment paradigms can be difficult to balance. When a systemic disease and its treatment are negatively affecting vision, hard choices need to be made.

An 83-year-old woman with diet-controlled type 2 diabetes presented to Lahey Medical Center as a transfer from Bermuda for presumed orbital cellulitis.

Drug-induced ocular side effects are common in every ophthalmologist’s practice. When we review our senior patients’ lists of medicines, it is amazing how many drugs most are taking. If we add in herbal remedies, which is a $20 billion market in the United States alone, the list grows even longer. And then we must finally consider environmental toxins and chemicals.

A 50-year-old woman presented to an outside ophthalmologist with a 2-month history of irritation and discharge after injury to the left eye with a mascara brush. Her exam was notable for conjunctival injection and a nasal conjunctival scar. She was treated with erythromycin ointment and a topical steroid with improvement of her symptoms; however, her conjunctival scar remained unchanged, so she was referred to Tufts Medical Center for evaluation. Before this, the patient had no ocular issues. She was otherwise healthy with no medical history or prescribed medications. Her social history was notable for a 30 pack-year smoking history, but she had recently quit smoking.