UMs are larger and more posterior in males

Uveal melanomas (UMs) are more likely to be larger and more posterior in male patients, compared to female patients, revealed a study in the journal Eye.

Dr B.E. Damato et al., Ocular Oncology Service, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Liverpool, UK, reviewed records from the Liverpool Ocular Oncology Centre (LOOC) database between 1993 and 2010. The χ2 test was used to identify categorical variables between male and female patients and the Mann-Whitney test was used to compare continuous variables.

Of the 3380 patients included in the study, 1685 were women and 1695 were men. Tumours developed in the choroid in 89.5% of the patients, 5.3% in the ciliary body and 5.2% in the iris.

In female patients the tumours were less likely to originate in the choroid and demonstrated a more circumferential spread in the ciliary body. But tumours in the male patients were more likely to develop within 3 mm of the optic disc or fovea.

The median diameters of the largest basal tumour in male patients were 12.2 mm and 11.9 mm in men and women, respectively. The median tumour thicknesses were 4.4 mm and 3.8 mm for men and women, respectively.

Prevalence of extraocular spread was higher in women with 112 suffering from ciliary body tumours, compared to 68 in the male patients. Of the 175 iris melanomas discovered, 103 were found in the female patients.