Symptoms of retinoblastoma
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
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The most commonly observed external symptoms of retinoblastoma are strabismus and leukocoria (the "white" reflex of the fundus). On the retina, the tumor looks like one or a number of foci of whitish color. The tumor can grow endophytic, with penetration into all media of the eye, or exophytally, affecting the retina. Other symptoms of retinoblastoma are periorbital inflammation, fixed pupil, iris heterochromia. Loss of vision in young children may not be manifested by complaints. If there is no secondary glaucoma or inflammation, intraocular tumors are painless. The presence of a tumor in the anterior parts of the eyeball, like metastasis, is associated with a poor prognosis. The main ways of metastasis of retinoblastoma are contact on the optical nerve, along the optic nerve membranes, hematogenously (through the veins of the retina) and through endophytic germination into the orbit.
Retinoblastoma develops in the area of both eyes (bilateral retinoblastoma) in 25-40% of cases. The average age of patients at the time of diagnosis is 13 months. Most cases of retinoblastoma are diagnosed before the age of 2, mainly due to the presence of screening among patients with a hereditary anamnesis. After 5 years, only 8% of cases are diagnosed.
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