[Experience in treatment of retinoblastoma in the German Democratic Republic (author's transl)].

A report on 150 patients suffering from retinoblastoma (71 unilateral and 79 bilateral cases) treated between 1960 and 1977. There was a familiar accumulation of retinoblastoma in 8.9% of the bilateral and 5.8% of the unilateral cases. Leukokoria and squint were the most frequent first signs of the tumor. The overall lethality was 12.7% during an average follow up period of 7.8 years. The lethality due to metastases on bilateral cases (8.9%) was as high as that due to unilateral retinoblastomas (9.9%). Spontaneous cure occurred in 2%. The cure rate of unilateral retinoblastomas was 87.3%. The survival rate in bilateral tumor cases 84.8%. The eye with the more advanced tumor was enucleated immediately; irradiation therapy only saved both eyes in one patient. Enucleation of the second eye was necessary in 40.5% of our patients suffering from bilateral retinoblastoma. In 43.8% of all bilateral retinoblastomas destruction of the tumor in the second eye was accomplished and a useful degree of visual acuity was achieved after an average follow-up period of 7.5 years.--The optimum therapeutic procedure depends on the size and position of the retinoblastoma and should be scheduled individually in each patient: photocoagulation, cryocoagulation, 106Ru/ 106Rh-applicator, 60Co-applicators, external beam irradiation (linear accelerator 5 MeV), chemotherapy.