Purpose: Several methods have been used for treatment of choroidal melanoma. The purpose of this preliminary paper is to evaluate the effectiveness of transpupillary thermo- therapy (TTT) as a primary treatment of small choroidal melanomas. Methods: This is a prospective nonrandomized study evaluating clinical aspects, tumor response, complications and visual outcome in patients presenting small choroidal melanomas (up to 4.0 mm thick and 12 mm base diameter) treated with TTT over 810 nm laser diode applications. Results: There were 11 patients treated with trans-pupillary thermotherapy, all of them presenting pig-mented small choroidal melanomas. Growth previous to treatment was documented in 5 patients and risk factors for growth or metastatic disease was present in all the patients. After treatment the patients were followed for 3 to 8 months (mean 5.7 months). Three laser sessions were used in 5 pa-tients and 4 sessions in 6 patients. The lesions presented at the beginning of the treatment a mean thickness of 2.7 mm, with a mean larger base diameter of 7.8 mm. All the lesions responded to treatment and presented decrease of thickness and base diameters. After transpupillary thermotherapy, the lesions' mean thickness was 1.8 mm and the mean larger base diameter was 6.7 mm. The mean reduction in thickness was 0.9 mm and the mean decrease in larger base diameter was 1.4 mm. The visual acuity remained unaffected in 5 cases and worsened after treatment in 6 cases. Nine patients presented compli- cations. A major complication occurred in a single patient who presented retinal detachment. Minor compli-cations were observed as follows: small retinal hemorrhages (7 patients), vitreous inflammation associated with tenuous vitreous membranes (1 patient) and conjunctiva and eyelid edema (1 patient). Local tumor control and conservation of the eyeball was accomplished in all the patients; they are all alive without evidence of metastatic disease in this initial follow-up period. Conclusion: This preliminary study suggests that the transpupillary thermotherapy is a promi-sing, effective and safe method for treatment of selected small choroidal melanomas. Further studies with longer follow-up period are necessary to better evaluate this treatment.
Melanoma; Choroid neoplasms; Induced hyperthermia; Laser surgery