Rare Thymic Carcinoid Tumor Metastasis to the Retina

Rare Thymic Carcinoid Tumor Metastasis to the Retina Mimicking a Traumatic Retinal Hemorrhage Rohit Dewan, DO and Gerritt Lagemann, MD University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Abstract #1396

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Purpose • Neuroendocrine tumor metastasis is a rare cause of retinal mass. • Imaging features are nonspecific and make diagnosis by imaging difficult. • We present a case of a retinal neuroendocrine tumor metastasis from a thymic carcinoid tumor mimicking a traumatic retinal hemorrhage.

Case Report • A 71 -year-old male presented to the emergency department after accidental trauma to the right forehead from a crowbar. • Despite imaging findings suggesting a traumatic retinal hemorrhage, the patient had no visual symptoms. • Direct ophthalmologic exam showed instead a vascular but nonhemorrhagic mass. • Further workup revealed widely-metastatic thymic carcinoid. The lesion represented a neuroendocrine metastasis.

Imaging Findings • Initial noncontrast head CT showed some right facial swelling (short arrow) and a discrete, lentiform, dense, 9 x 5 mm collection (long arrow) along the right posterior retina.

Imaging Findings • MR showed a homogenous, intrinsically T 1 -hyperintense, T 2 hyperintense mass with no definite enhancement. • The collection was initially presumed to represent a traumatic retinal hemorrhage. • Clinically, however, the patient had no visual symptoms. T 1 Precontrast T 1 Postcontrast FLAIR

Imaging Findings • F 18 -FDG PET CT showed the mass to be FDG avid.

Imaging Findings • Ophthalmologic ultrasound showed a dome-shaped, hyperechoic retinal mass.

Imaging Findings • Direct ophthalmologic visualization showed a well-demarcated, nonhemorrhagic, amelanotic mass.

Summary • A careful patient history revealed a remote history of thymic neuroendocrine tumor resected several years prior to current presentation. • Further workup revealed widely metastatic disease including this orbital metastatic lesion.

Summary • Vascular tumors, including metastatic neuroendocrine tumors, should be included as a possible diagnosis when encountering a retinal mass, even in the setting of trauma. • Comprising only about 0. 5% of all malignancies, carcinoid tumor is an uncommon neoplasm arising from enterochromafin cells within the gastrointestinal tract and bronchial tree.

Summary • There are currently only a handful of reports regarding orbital metastasis within the radiology and ophthalmology literature. • However, as treatment options improve and survival increases, new metastatic patterns have emerged, and orbital metastases can be expected to become more common.

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