Ross Jonathan J, Tu Kyaw L, Damato Bertil E
St. Paul's Eye Unit, Link 8Z, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Prescott Street, Liverpool, England.
Am J Ophthalmol. 2004 Oct;138(4):672-3. doi: 10.1016/j.ajo.2004.05.004.
To report the beneficial systemic effect of a 5-week course of intralesional interferon alpha-2b (IFN-A) injections to bilateral conjunctival lymphomas in a patient with relapsing non-Hodgkin's lymphoma.
Interventional case report.
A patient in relapse with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma who declined further systemic therapy received 1.5-million IU IFN-A injected intralesionally to each of two conjunctival lymphomas to reduce ocular discomfort. This dose was repeated 10 times over 5 weeks.
Conjunctival, postauricular, and facial lesions clinically resolved within 3 months of the start of treatment. Inguinal lymph nodes reduced in size, and the patient reported increased well-being and less fatigue. Side effects included injection discomfort and mild flulike symptoms, which were well tolerated. The improvement lasted 6 months from the first IFN-A injection.
Intralesional treatment of conjunctival lymphomas with IFN-A induced disappearance of the tumors and also had a beneficial systemic effect.
