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Screening for retinoblastoma should be part of a "well baby" screening for newborns during the first three months of life, to include:
- The red reflex: checking for a normal reddish-orange reflection from the eye's retina with an ophthalmoscope or retinoscope from approximately 30 cm / 1 foot, usually done in a dimly lit or dark room.
- The corneal light reflex / Hirschberg test: checking for symmetrical reflection of beam of light in the same spot on each eye when a light is shined into each cornea, to help determine whether the eyes are crossed.
- Eye examination: checking for any structural abnormalities.
- Bryan Shaw helped develop a smart-phone app that can detect leukocoria in photos.
Identifying the "RB1" gene mutation that led to a child's retinoblastoma can be important in the clinical care of the affected individual and in the care of (future) siblings and offspring.It may run in the family.
1. Bilaterally affected individuals and 13-15% of unilaterally affected individuals, are expected to show an RB1 mutation in blood. By identifying the "RB1" mutation in the affected individual, (future) siblings, children, and other relatives can be tested for the mutation; if they do not carry the mutation, child relatives are not at risk of retinoblastoma so need not undergo the trauma and expense of examinations under anaesthetic. For the 85% of unilaterally affected patients found not to carry either of their eye tumor RB1 mutations in blood, neither molecular testing nor clinical surveillance of siblings is required.
2. If the "RB1" mutation of an affected individual is identified, amniotic cells in an at-risk pregnancy can be tested for the family mutation; any fetus that carries the mutation can be delivered early, allowing early treatment of any eye tumors, leading to better visual outcomes.
3. For cases of unilateral retinoblastoma where no eye tumor is available for testing, if no "RB1" mutation is detected in blood after high sensitivity molecular testing (i.e. >93% RB1 mutation detection sensitivity), the risk of a germline "RB1" mutation is reduced to less than 1%, a level at which only clinic examination (and not examinations under anaesthetic) is recommended for the affected individual and their future offspring (National Retinoblastoma Strategy, Canadian Guidelines for Care).
All newborns should have screening eye examinations, including an evaluation of the red reflexes.
- The red reflex test is best performed in a darkened room and involves shining a bright direct ophthalmoscope into both eyes simultaneously from a distance of 1– 2 ft. This test can be used for routine ocular screening by nurses, pediatricians, family practitioners, and optometrists.
- Retinoscopy through the child's undilated pupil is helpful for assessing the potential visual significance of an axial lens opacity in a pre-verbal child. Any central opacity or surrounding cortical distortion greater than 3 mm can be assumed to be visually significant.
- Laboratory Tests : In contrast to unilateral cataracts, bilateral congenital cataracts may be associated with many systemic and metabolic diseases. A basic laboratory evaluation for bilateral cataracts of unknown cause in apparently healthy children includes:
On photographs taken using a flash, instead of the familiar red-eye effect, leukocoria can cause a bright white reflection in an affected eye. Leukocoria may appear also in low indirect light, similar to eyeshine.
Leukocoria can be detected by a routine eye exam (see Ophthalmoscopy). For screening purposes, the red reflex test is used. In this test, when a light is shone briefly through the pupil, an orange red reflection is normal. A white reflection is leukocoria.
The first sign is normally a painless abdominal tumor that can be easily felt by the doctor. An ultrasound scan, computed tomography scan, or MRI scan is done first. A tumor biopsy is not typically performed due to the risk of creating fragments of cancer tissue and seeding the abdomen with malignant cells.
Ocular oncology is the branch of medicine dealing with tumors relating to the eye and its adnexa.
Ocular oncology takes into consideration that the primary requirement for patients is preservation of life by removal of the tumor, along with best efforts directed at preservation of useful vision, followed by cosmetic appearance. The treatment of ocular tumors is generally a multi-specialty effort, requiring coordination between the ophthalmologist, medical oncologist, radiation specialist, head & neck surgeon/ENT surgeon, pediatrician/internal medicine/hospitalist and a multidisciplinary team of support staff and nurses.
Staging is a standard way to describe the extent of spread of Wilms tumors, and to determine prognosis and treatments. Staging is based on anatomical findings and tumor cells pathology.
In general, the younger the child, the greater the urgency in removing the cataract, because of the risk of amblyopia. For optimal visual development in newborns and young infants, a visually significant unilateral congenital cataract should be detected and removed before age 6 weeks, and visually significant bilateral congenital cataracts should be removed before age 10 weeks.
Some congenital cataracts are too small to affect vision, therefore no surgery or treatment will be done. If they are superficial and small, an ophthalmologist will continue to monitor them throughout a patient's life. Commonly, a patient with small congenital cataracts that do not affect vision will eventually be affected later in life; generally this will take decades to occur.
Trilateral retinoblastoma (TRb) is a malignant midline primitive neuroectodermal tumor occurring in patients with inherited uni- or bilateral retinoblastoma. In most cases trilateral retinoblastoma presents itself as pineoblastoma (pineal TRb). In about a fourth of the cases the tumor develops in another intracranial region, most commonly supra- or parasellar (non-pineal TRb), but there are reported cases with non-pineal TRb in the 3rd ventricle. In most cases pineal TRb is diagnosed before the age of 5, but after the diagnosis of retinoblastoma. Non-pineal TRb, however, is often diagnosed simultaneous with retinoblastoma. Prognosis of patients with trilateral retinoblastoma is dismal, only a few patients have survived more than 5 years after diagnosis; all survivors were diagnosed with small tumors in a subclinical stage. Recent advances in (high-dose) chemotherapy treatment regimens and early detection have improved survival of patients with trilateral retinoblastoma.
Most optic nerve tumors (65 percent) are gliomas that occur somewhere along the anterior visual pathway.
Orbital dermoid cysts are benign which are typically found at the junction of sutures, most commonly at the fronto-zygomatic suture. Large deep orbital dermoid cysts can cause pressure effects on the muscles and optic nerve, leading to diplopia and loss of vision.
Pineoblastoma (also pinealoblastoma) is a malignant tumor of the pineal gland. A pineoblastoma is a supratentorial midline primitive neuroectodermal tumor.
Pineoblastoma may occur in patients with hereditary uni- or bilateral retinoblastoma. When retinoblastoma patients present with pineoblastoma this is characterized as "trilateral retinoblastoma". Up to 5% of patients with hereditary retinoblastoma are at risk of developing trilateral retinoblastoma. Prognosis of patients with trilateral retinoblastoma is dismal, only a few patients have survived more than 5 years after diagnosis; all survivors were diagnosed with small tumors in a subclinical stage. Recent advances in (high-dose) chemotherapy treatment regimens and early detection have improved survival of patients with trilateral retinoblastoma to up to 50%.
The only reliable way to determine whether a soft-tissue tumour is benign or malignant is through a biopsy. There are two methods for acquisition of tumour tissue for cytopathological analysis;
- Needle Aspiration, via biopsy needle
- surgically, via an incision made into the tumour.
A pathologist examines the tissue under a microscope. If cancer is present, the pathologist can usually determine the type of cancer and its grade. Here, 'grade' refers to a scale used to represent concisely the predicted growth rate of the tumour and its tendency to spread, and this is determined by the degree to which the cancer cells appear abnormal when examined under a microscope. Low-grade sarcomas, although cancerous, are defined as those that are less likely to metastasise. High-grade sarcomas are defined as those more likely to spread to other parts of the body.
For soft-tissue sarcoma there are two histological grading systems : the National Cancer Institute (NCI) system and the French Federation of Cancer Centers Sarcoma Group (FNCLCC) system.
Soft tissue sarcomas commonly originate in the upper body, in the shoulder or upper chest. Some symptoms are uneven posture, pain in the trapezius muscle and cervical inflexibility [difficulty in turning the head].
The most common site to which soft tissue sarcoma spreads is the lungs.
An optic nerve melanocytoma is a tumor made up of melanocytes and melanin. These tumors are typically a benign; they can grow, but rarely transform into a malignancy. Even so, local growth can affect adjacent tissues.
Radiological studies of the abdomen, such as CT scans and magnetic resonance imaging are useful for identifying the site of the tumor, differentiating it from other diseases, such as adrenocortical adenoma, and determining the extent of invasion of the tumor into surrounding organs and tissues. CT scans of the chest and bone scans are routinely performed to look for metastases to the lungs and bones respectively. These studies are critical in determining whether or not the tumor can be surgically removed, the only potential cure at this time.
For surface epithelial-stromal tumors, the most common sites of metastasis are the pleural cavity (33%), the liver (26%), and the lungs (3%).
Hormonal syndromes should be confirmed with laboratory testing. Laboratory findings in Cushing syndrome include increased serum glucose (blood sugar) and increased urine cortisol. Adrenal virilism is confirmed by the finding of an excess of serum androstenedione and dehydroepiandrosterone. Findings in Conn syndrome include low serum potassium, low plasma renin activity, and high serum aldosterone. Feminization is confirmed with the finding of excess serum estrogen.
Grossly, retinal detachment and yellowish subretinal exudate containing cholesterol crystals are commonly seen.
Microscopically, the wall of retinal vessels may be thickened in some cases, while in other cases the wall may be thinned with irregular dilatation of the lumen. The subretinal exudate consists of cholesterol crystals, macrophages laden with cholesterol and pigment, erythrocytes, and hemosiderin. A granulomatous reaction, induced by the exudate, may be seen with the retina. Portions of the retina may develop gliosis as a response to injury.
Blastomere biopsy is a technique in which blastomeres are removed from the zona pellucida. It is commonly used to detect aneuploidy. Genetic analysis is conducted once the procedure is complete. Additional studies are needed to assess the risk associated with the procedure.
Imaging studies such as ultrasonography (US), Computerized Tomography (CT) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) can aid diagnosis. On ultrasound, Coats' disease appears as a hyperechoic mass in the posterior vitreous without posterior acoustic shadowing; vitreous and subretinal hemorrhage may often be observed.
On CT, the globe appears hyperdense compared to normal vitreous due to the proteinaceous exudate, which may obliterate the vitreous space in advanced disease. The anterior margin of the subretinal exudate enhances with contrast. Since the retina is fixed posteriorly at the optic disc, this enhancement has a V-shaped configuration.
On MRI, the subretinal exudate shows high signal intensity on both T1- and T2-weighted images. The exudate may appear heterogeneous if hemorrhage or fibrosis is present. The subretinal space does not enhance with gadolinium contrast. Mild to moderate linear enhancement may be seen between the exudate and the remaining vitreous. The exudate shows a large peak at 1-1.6 ppm on proton MR spectroscopy.
Many types of blastoma have been linked to a mutation in tumor suppressor genes. For example, pleuropulmonary blastomas have been linked to a mutation of the coding for p53. However, the mutation which allows proliferation of incompletely differentiated cells can vary from patient to patient and a mutation can alter the prognosis. In the case of retinoblastoma, patients carry a visibly abnormal karyotype, with a loss of function mutation on a specific band of chromosome 13. This recessive deletion on the rb gene is also associated with other cancer types and must be present on both alleles, for a normal cell to progress towards malignancy.
Karyotyping involves performing an amniocentesis in order to study the cells of an unborn fetus during metophase 1. Light microscopy can be used to visually determine if aneuploidy is an issue.
In general, treatment for soft-tissue sarcomas depends on the stage of the cancer. The stage of the sarcoma is based on the size and grade of the tumor, and whether the cancer has spread to the lymph nodes or other parts of the body (metastasized). Treatment options for soft-tissue sarcomas include surgery, radiation therapy, and chemotherapy.
- Surgery is the most common treatment for soft-tissue sarcomas. If possible, the doctor will remove the cancer and a safe margin of the healthy tissue around it. It is important to obtain a margin free of tumor to decrease the likelihood of local recurrence and give the best chance for eradication of the tumor. Depending on the size and location of the sarcoma, it may, rarely, be necessary to remove all or part of an arm or leg.
- Radiation therapy may be used either before surgery to shrink tumors or after surgery to kill any cancer cells that may have been left behind. In some cases, it can be used to treat tumours that cannot be surgically removed. In multiple studies, radiation therapy has been found to improve the rate of local control, but has not had any influence on overall survival.
- Chemotherapy may be used with radiation therapy either before or after surgery to try to shrink the tumor or kill any remaining cancer cells. The use of chemotherapy to prevent the spread of soft-tissue sarcomas has not been proven to be effective. If the cancer has spread to other areas of the body, chemotherapy may be used to shrink tumors and reduce the pain and discomfort they cause, but is unlikely to eradicate the disease.
A rostral lesion within the midbrain may affect the convergence center thus causing bilateral divergence of the eyes which is known as the WEBINO syndrome (Wall Eyed Bilateral INO) as each eye looks at the opposite "wall".
If the lesion affects the PPRF (or the abducens nucleus) and the MLF on the same side (the MLF having crossed from the opposite side), then the "one and a half syndrome" occurs which, simply put, involves paralysis of all conjugate horizontal eye movements other than abduction of the eye on the opposite side to the lesion.
CT and MRI are most often used to identify intracranial abnormalities. When a child is born with a facial cutaneous vascular malformation covering a portion of the upper or the lower eyelids, imaging should be performed to screen for intracranial leptomeningeal angiomatosis. The haemangioma present on the surface of the brain is in the vast majority of cases on the same side as the birth mark and gradually results in calcification of the underlying brain and atrophy of the affected region