BACKGROUND: Metastatic liver melanoma is a rare event in the Chinese population with extremely poor prognosis. Any treatment that controls a metastatic hepatic lesion potentially prolongs survival. This study aimed to evaluate the survival of patients with isolated liver metastases from uveal melanoma treated with partial hepatectomy or non-surgical management and to find the best therapeutic modality for these patients.
METHODS: From January 1996 to September 2008, eight patients with liver metastases secondary to uveal melanoma were admitted to our hospital. Five patients underwent partial hepatectomy and 3 received other treatments (TACE, RFA, PEI). Their medical records were reviewed and overall survival was analyzed.
RESULTS: The patients comprised 3 men and 5 women, with a median age of 44 years. Six patients presented with liver metastases at the time the primary tumor was diagnosed. The interval from the diagnosis of uveal melanoma to liver metastasis in the remaining 2 patients was 9.5 and 32.5 months, respectively. The median survival after the treatment of liver metastasis was 11.5 and 7.5 months in the surgical and non-surgical groups, respectively. There was no procedure-related mortality in the whole study cohort.
CONCLUSIONS: Partial hepatectomy or other therapies were safe and feasible for isolated liver metastases from uveal mela-noma. Aggressive treatment with multidisciplinary modalities may result in prolonged survival.