Epidemiologic Features of Retinoblastoma in Shiraz, Southern Iran

Retinoblastoma (RB) is the most common primary intraocular cancer of childhood. There is no published report on this affliction at our center as a referral center in southern Iran. This study aimed to perform a 15 years epidemiological assessment of RB, in Fars Province, Southern Iran. We retrospectively analyzed medical records of all patients with RB diagnosed in Khalili Hospital affiliated to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in Shiraz, Southern Iran. All available pathologic slides were reviewed and staging of tumors were revised using the TNM classification of 2008. Sixty-seven patients were enrolled in this study (46.3% females and 53.7% males). Among the cases, 71.6% had unilateral and 28.8% bilateral RB. The mean age of symptom presentation and diagnosis were 20.5±16.5 and 26.3±20.1 months, respectively, which were significantly lower in bilateral cases. Leukocoria wasthe most common presenting symptom (56.7%), followed by strabismus (10.4%). The result of histopathological review showed that RB in 70% of patients was at T1, T2 and T3 stage, but 30% were at T4 stage. Demographic and clinical variables of RB under the present study are comparable with published reports but our patients were diagnosed at the later stage, leading to poorer prognosis. It is necessary to expand the existing organizations into a comprehensive population-based registry system to obtain a clearer picture of the epidemiology of RB in our region.