Proton beam irradiation. An alternative to enucleation for intraocular melanomas.

Proton irradiation was used in the treatment of uveal melanomas in 36 eyes. The average follow-up period was 16 months. One patient developed metastatic disease and died. No eye has been enucleated and tumor regression has been observed in all 22 eyes with a follow-up of more than 12 months. This type of treatment offers definite advantages over previously used methods, can be used for the treatment of relatively large melanomas, and should be considered before enucleation.