Carcinoembryonic antigen. Its role in the evaluation of intraocular malignant tumors
J. B. Michelson, N. T. Felberg and J. A. Shields
Plasma carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) was studied in 60 patients with
histologically confirmed intraocular neoplasms including 56 malignant
melanomas of the uvea and four metastatic tumors to the choroid. While 45%
of the patients with primary uveal melanomas, as well as 75% of the
patients with metastatic disease demonstrated elevated plasma CEA levels,
both patients who exhibited metastatic lesions of entodermal origin
demonstrated plasma CEA values that clearly fell into a separate, highly
elevated category, consistent with metastatic disease or pancreatic or
colorectal carcinoma. Thus, in the patient seen with a nonpigmented
choroidal mass that may represent either a choroidal hemangioma, amelanotic
melanoma, or metastatic tumor, plasma CEA levels may be useful in the
differential diagnosis. If the clinician suspects a metastatic tumor from
an occult primary site, highly elevated CEA levels may indicate that the
lesion is of entodermal origin.
