[Prevalence of ocular metastasis in patients with known metastatic disease: preliminary results].

Purpose: To evaluate, in a prospective fashion, the prevalence of intraocular metastasis: most frequent primary tumors and ocular tissue most frequently compromised by metastasis.

Methods: In-patients with malignant neoplasm and metastatic disease from a tertiary Oncology Hospital (HSR) were consecutively evaluated between January 2001 and July 2002. All patients underwent complete ophthalmologic examination, including indirect ophthalmoscopy under pharmacological mydriasis using a 28 diopter-lens and, in cases suspicious of neoplasia, ultrasonography and fluorescein angiography were performed. Those cases of diagnostic uncertainty were submitted to fine needle aspiration biopsy. The diagnosis of metastatic ocular tumor was established based on the clinical features and the results of the mentioned ancillary studies.

Results: The 100 studied patients presented ages between 17 and 87 years, 71 being females and 29 males. There was a predominance of Caucasian individuals (n=88) in this group. Twenty-one patients presented ocular lesions suggestive of metastasis. The primary malignancy originating ocular metastasis most frequently was breast cancer (28.6%). Evaluating the tumor type separately, lung cancer presented a highest prevalence of metastasis to the eye (71.5%). The choroid was involved in 57% of the cases and the main ocular complaint of these patients was blurring or decrease in vision. There was no difference in the frequency of involvement between the right and the left eye.

Conclusion: The prevalence of ocular metastasis in patients with malignancy and metastatic disease seemed significant in the studied group. The neoplasms more frequently causing ocular metastasis were: breast and lung carcinoma, and the choroid was involved more frequently.