CONTRIBUTION OF MAGNETIC-RESONANCE-IMAGIN G IN THE DIAGNOSIS FOR CASES WITH SMALL MELANOMAS OF THE CHOROID OF UNCERTAIN NATURE

The main complementary procedures used to diagnose a choroidal melanom a are A- and B-mode ultrasonography, fluorescein angiography and magne tic resonance imaging (MRI). With MRI the malignant tumour has unique MRI signature owing to the paramagnetic properties of melanin. MRI can thus help in making the differential diagnosis and in estimating tumo ur extension. The advantage of MRI is that it provides complementary i nformation that, when added to the results of the other investigative techniques, results in a quasi certain diagnosis. Three clinical cases are discribed.