There is a rare and little-known form of cancer: intraocular melanoma. This is a tumor that grows in the eye. 130 Belgians are diagnosed each year. The Saint-Luc clinics in Brussels offer a unique treatment in Belgium: a radioactive gold plate which is implanted in the eye for 4 days.
RTL info was able to exclusively follow an impressive operation: that of the placement of a radioactive plaque in the eye of a patient suffering from medium-sized melanoma. “This tumor has the shape of a heart,” notes Paulina Bartoszek, surgeon specializing in ocular oncology, after opening the eye of the 65-year-old patient.
The procedure lasts around thirty minutes. And you have to have a strong stomach to see the images. The surgeon our reporters followed places a radioactive plate against the tumor and will remove it four days later. A treatment that has several advantages. “If we want to remove the tumor surgically, we would have to remove the eye, explains the surgeon. If we perform this type of intervention, it is to be able to preserve the patient’s eye”.
Radioactive radiation will hit the tumor
The patient will feel a simple discomfort that is not very painful. The Saint-Luc clinics have around thirty homemade plaques. They are re-used and adapted to each new case. “They are different in size and some have notches to fit close to the optic nerve”explains Jean-Marc Denis, medical physicist.
The plaque is gold. This metal functions as shielding that protects healthy tissues. A medical physicist sticks grains of iodine into it. “Five grains of iodine 125 which emit radiation”, continues Jean-Marc Denis.
Struck by the radioactive rays, the tumor will gradually deflate. The result is checked every 6 months.
Michèle “trusted” and “felt good”
Michèle had surgery last January. His vision was partly obscured. “Finding out you have a tumor is always scary but I trusted. I felt good from start to finish“, testifies Michèle Friedlich, patient.
The risk of intraocular melanoma increases with age. “Many people do not know that cancer can appear in the eye, explains Paulina Bartoszek, surgeon specializing in ocular oncology. So, it’s important to draw attention to it.”
The operation is a success in 98% of cases. The eye is completely healed after two years.
Eye cancer gold plaque intraocular melanoma Saint-Luc clinics
