Retinoblastoma

Symptoms of retinoblastoma can include a white pupil (leukocoria) or cross-eyes (strabismus Strabismus Strabismus is an intermittent or constant misalignment of an eye so that its line of vision is not pointed at the same object as the other eye. If untreated, strabismus can cause amblyopia ... read more ).

Large retinoblastomas may affect vision but tend to cause few other symptoms.

If the cancer has spread, symptoms may include headache, loss of appetite, or vomiting.

If a doctor suspects a retinoblastoma, the child is given a general anesthetic General anesthesia Surgery is the term traditionally used to describe procedures (called surgical procedures) that involve manually cutting or stitching tissue to treat diseases, injuries, or deformities. However... read more , which makes the child lose consciousness, and both eyes are examined. A light and a special lens (indirect ophthalmoscopy) are used to look through the lens and iris at the retina. A general anesthetic is necessary because small children are not able to cooperate during the careful, time-consuming examination required to diagnose retinoblastoma.

The cancer can also be identified by ultrasonography, CT Computed Tomography (CT) In computed tomography (CT), which used to be called computed axial tomography (CAT), an x-ray source and x-ray detector rotate around a person. In modern scanners, the x-ray detector usually... read more , or MRI Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) In magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a strong magnetic field and very high frequency radio waves are used to produce highly detailed images. MRI does not use x-rays and is usually very safe... read more of the eyes. These tests also help determine whether the cancer has spread to the brain. Optical coherence tomography Optical Coherence Tomography A variety of tests can be done to confirm an eye problem or to determine the extent or severity of an eye disorder. Each eye is tested separately. In general, angiography involves injecting... read more is another imaging test that sometimes is done.

Doctors may also do a spinal tap Spinal Tap Diagnostic procedures may be needed to confirm a diagnosis suggested by the medical history and neurologic examination. Electroencephalography (EEG) is a simple, painless procedure in which... read more (lumbar puncture) to look for cancer cells in a sample of cerebrospinal fluid. Finding cancer cells in this fluid is further evidence that the cancer has spread to the brain.

Because the cancer can spread to the bones or bone marrow, a bone scan Bone scanning A doctor can often diagnose a musculoskeletal disorder based on the history and the results of a physical examination. Laboratory tests, imaging tests, or other diagnostic procedures are sometimes... read more may be done and a sample of bone marrow may be removed Bone Marrow Examination Red blood cells, most white blood cells, and platelets are produced in the bone marrow, the soft fatty tissue inside bone cavities. Sometimes a sample of bone marrow must be examined to determine... read more for examination.

Children who have retinoblastoma should see a genetic specialist and have genetic testing. The specialist can then advise parents whether other family members are at risk and whether any other tests should be done. Typically, if children have a hereditary retinoblastoma gene, their parents and brothers and sisters should also be tested for the mutated gene. Siblings who have the mutated gene should have their eyes examined for retinoblastoma beginning at birth and continuing every 4 months until they are 4 years old.

If genetic testing is not available, all children who have a parent or sibling who had retinoblastoma should have the same regular eye examinations. Adult family members of a child with retinoblastoma also need to have an eye examination. Even though adults will not develop retinoblastoma, the gene that causes retinoblastoma can also cause a noncancerous (benign) eye tumor called retinocytoma.

(See also Cancer Treatment Principles Cancer Treatment Principles Treating cancer is one of the most complex aspects of medical care. It involves a team that encompasses many types of doctors working together (for example, primary care doctors, gynecologists... read more and Surgery for Cancer Surgery for Cancer Surgery is a traditional form of cancer treatment. It is the most effective in eliminating most types of cancer before it has spread to lymph nodes or distant sites (metastasized). Surgery may... read more .)

When only one eye is affected and that eye has little or no vision, doctors usually remove the entire eyeball along with part of the optic nerve.

When the cancer affects both eyes, doctors try to preserve some vision by treating the cancer without removing both eyeballs, although they sometimes remove the most severely affected eye. Treatment options include chemotherapy drugs injected directly through the main artery that provides blood to the eye (called intra-arterial chemotherapy), radiation therapy Radiation Therapy for Cancer Radiation is a form of intense energy generated by a radioactive substance, such as cobalt, or by specialized equipment, such as an atomic particle (linear) accelerator. Radiation preferentially... read more , lasers, freezing (cryotherapy), or, for very small cancers, patches containing radioactive material (brachytherapy).

Combinations of chemotherapy drugs Chemotherapy and Other Systemic Cancer Treatments Systemic treatments are those that have effects throughout the body rather than being applied directly to the cancer. Chemotherapy is a form of systemic treatment that uses drugs to kill cancer... read more given by mouth or vein (such as carboplatin, etoposide, and vincristine, or cyclophosphamide plus vincristine) may be used to shrink a large tumor in one eye, shrink tumors that are in both eyes, treat cancer that has spread beyond the eye, or treat cancer that returns after initial treatment. Chemotherapy is used with other treatment options because alone it usually cannot cure this cancer.

Radiation therapy to the eye has serious consequences, such as cataracts, decreased vision, chronic dry eye, and wasting of the tissue around the eye. The bones of the face may not grow normally, resulting in a deformed appearance. Additionally, the risk of a developing a second cancer increases in the area where radiation is done.

After treatment, a doctor who specializes in treating cancer in children (pediatric oncologist) and an ophthalmologist should continue to monitor the child because of the risk of a second cancer developing.

With treatment, children with retinoblastoma that has not spread past the retina are cured more than 90% of the time. The prognosis is poor for children whose cancer has spread.

Without treatment, most children with retinoblastoma die within 2 years.

Children with the hereditary type of retinoblastoma have an increased risk of developing a second cancer, such as soft-tissue sarcomas, melanomas Melanoma Melanoma is a skin cancer that begins in the pigment-producing cells of the skin (melanocytes). Melanomas can begin on normal skin or in existing moles. They may be irregular, flat or raised... read more , and osteosarcomas Osteosarcomas (osteogenic sarcoma) Tumors that originally start in the bone are called primary bone tumors. Primary bone tumors may be noncancerous (benign) or cancerous (malignant). After cancer is diagnosed, it is staged. Staging... read more . About half of second cancers occur where radiation therapy was given. About 70% of the time, the second cancer occurs within 30 years of the retinoblastoma.

The following English-language resource may be useful. Please note that THE MANUAL is not responsible for the content of this resource.