Abstract
Purpose:
Currently, malignant and benign pigmented intraocular tumors are differentiated by comprehensive judgment of clinical findings based on ophthalmoscopic examination and imaging findings. However, the differentiation is often difficult. The aim of this study was to examine the usefulness of measuring immune mediators in aqueous humor samples to differentiate malignant from benign pigmented intraocular tumors.
Methods:
In 29 eyes (13 with benign pigmented tumor, 16 with malignant melanoma), undiluted aqueous humor samples were collected, and cytometric bead array was used to determine the aqueous humor concentrations of 35 immune mediators including 14 interleukins (IL), interferon (IFN)-γ, interferon-γ-inducible protein (IP)-10, monocyte chemoattractant protein (MCP)-1, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1α, MIP-1β, regulated on activation, normal T cell expressed and secreted (RANTES), monokine induced by interferon-γ (Mig), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), Fas ligand, granzyme A, granzyme B, eotaxin, interferon-inducible T-cell a chemoattractant (ITAC), fractalkine, granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), angiogenin, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, LT-α, and CD40L.
Results:
Aqueous humor levels of angiogenin and MCP-1 were significantly higher in eyes with malignant melanoma than in those with benign tumor (p<0.05).
Conclusions:
The results of our study demonstrate the applicability of MCP-1 and angiogenin in aqueous humors as useful marker in distinguishing malignant and benign pigmented intraocular tumors and may be helpful as an adjunct to histomorphology and other markers in the diagnosis and appropriate clinical management.
Keywords: 744 tumors •
490 cytokines/chemokines •
557 inflammation