Characteristics of Germline and Non-germline Retinoblastomas

Purpose: To discuss the clinical characteristics, treatment and outcomes of germline and non-germline retinoblastoma tumors. Methods: A retrospective study was performed on retinoblastoma cases from 1979 to 2007. General characteristics of the patients, treatment modalities, histopathological findings and survival were compared in germline versus non-germline cases. Results: We analyzed 557 cases of retinoblastoma with mean age of 32.2΁22.0 months including 177 and 380 patients with germline and non-germline tumors, respectively. Germline cases were significantly different from non-germline counterparts in terms of mean age (24.7΁17.7 vs 35.7΁23.0 months), symptoms (leukocoria in 49.4% vs 62.9%), and outcomes (death in 40.1% vs 13.9%), respectively (P Conclusion: Despite higher tumor staging in nongermline cases at the time of diagnosis and therefore more aggressive behavior of the tumor, germline cases had a higher rate of mortality during the follow up period.