Treatment outcomes among patients with metastatic uveal melanoma: a retrospective monocentric study

Abstract

Aim: to establish the dependence of cancer specific survival rate of patients with metastatic uveal melanoma on the treatment method, according to the Belarusian Cancer Registry. Material and methods. We analyzed the data of the Belarusian cancer registry and medical records of patients diagnosed with metastatic uveal melanoma in the period from 2006 to 2015. Treatment methods included chemotherapy, radiation therapy, surgical removal of metastases, immunotherapy with roncoleukin. Hepatotropic therapy included hepatic artery chemoembolization, radiofrequency ablation of metastatic foci, or liver resection. We analyzed cancer specific 1-, 3-, 5- and 10-year survival of patients in treatment groups. Results. The median cancer specific survival of patients who received only supportive care was 2.0 (95% CI 1.1–2.9) months, after any of the anticancer therapy methods application — 10.0 (95% CI 7.3–12.7) months. The median cancer specific survival in the chemotherapy group was 9.0 (95% CI 6.3–11.7) months, in the case of hepatotropic therapy — 20.0 (95% CI 10.9–29.1). The median cancer specific survival of patients receiving immunotherapy was 7.0 (95% CI 1.1–12.9), the survival plateau was reached after 48 months. Conclusion. Metastatic uveal melanoma is characterized by a poor prognosis, including during therapy. Both hepatotropic and systemic therapy have limited efficacy. Further study of the tumor biology and immune microenvironment is required in order to determine possible targets of exposure.