Mouse model of brachytherapy in consort with enucleation for treatment of malignant intraocular melanoma.

The efficacy of brachytherapy in the treatment and prevention of metastasis of intraocular melanoma was investigated in a mouse model. A highly metastatic subline of B16 melanoma was transplanted into the anterior segment of C57BL/6 mice and allowed to grow. Brachytherapy was delivered by means of miniature iodine 125 seeds implanted in shallow subcutaneous pockets of the upper eyelid margin of these mice, and 25 Gy of radiation was delivered between days 12 and 14. This brachytherapy reduced both the tumor volume and the number of mitotic figures per high-power field compared with irradiated controls. In a second experiment, 25 Gy of brachytherapy was delivered before enucleation, straddling enucleation, and after enucleation; there was a significant reduction in metastasis when radiation was delivered prior to enucleation. This model may be useful in conducting further studies involving brachytherapy with 125I plaque implants.