Ksander and his colleagues are working on one approach to provide protection to these patients. Ksander's group has identified killer lymphocytes that identify and kill only the tumor cells, offering hope that a future treatment may confer some protection from spread of the deadly disease. Clement L. Trempe, M.D., senior member of Schepens Retina Associates and a Clinical Senior Scientist at The Schepens Eye Research Institute, said that treatment for large ocular tumors had included radiation first and then enucleation. But these studies show there is no reason to radiate. It makes absolutely no difference.
Enucleation is still the best treatment for large tumors.
A separate trial comparing different treatments for medium-sized eye melanomas will finish enrolling patients this year.