Article révisé par les pairs
Résumé : Radiolabeled benzamides have recently been introduced for the detection of melanoma. We evaluated the potential clinical applicability of 123I-N- (2-diethylaminoethyl) 4-iodobenzamide ([123I]IDAB) for SPECT imaging of ocular melanoma. Methods: Fourteen patients were studied, 10 with or suspected of malignant ocular melanoma and tour with ocular naevi. All patients underwent SPECT imaging of the head and whole-body scintigraphy 4-5 hr after injection of 170 MBq [123I]IDAB. Results: A definite tracer hyperfixation was observed in the pathological eye in 9 of 10 (90%) patients with ocular melanoma. The pathological-to-normal eye ratio averaged 1.46 (range 1.07-2.86). The melanoma nature of the scintigraphic lesions was confirmed after enucleation in eight cases and by clinical evolution in two. A false-negative scan was reported in a patient with a small and hypochromic lesion. In patients with ocular naevi, no false-positive scintigrams were documented. Conclusion: Iodine-123-IDAB scintigraphy may contribute significantly to decide about enucleation in cases where some doubt persists with conventional techniques.