CLINICAL-STUDY OF [I-123] N-(2-DIETHYLAMINOETHYL)-4-IODOBENZAMIDE IN THE DIAGNOSIS OF PRIMARY AND METASTATIC OCULAR MELANOMA

Purpose: To assess the value of scintigraphy with [I-123]N-(2-diethyla minoethyl)-4-iodobenzamide (BZA), a phase II clinical trial was perfor med on 48 patients with a suspicion of ocular melanoma. Methods: 56 ex aminations were performed to image lesions with a clinical diagnosis o f primary ocular melanoma before and/or after treatment, to observe th e results in simulating lesions or to image metastases. Results: Ocula r BZA-scintigraphy demonstrated a sensitivity of 86%, and a specificit y of 83%, Whole-body scintigraphy was used in the follow-up of treated patients and could be repeated. We imaged orbital recurrence, known a nd occult metastases, specially in the liver, After 9 conservative tre atments ocular BZA-scintigraphy was negative in 9 eyes. Conclusion: Th e BZA-scintigraphy in combination with other diagnostic procedures app eared to be a suitable method in the diagnosis of ocular melanoma and a potentially useful imaging modality to screen for ocular malignant m elanoma metastases.