Medulloepithelioma of the Ciliary Body

Intraocular medulloepithelioma is an uncommon embryogenic neoplasm of neuroepithelial origin that usually develops from the nonpigmented epithelium of the ciliary body, retina, and optic nerve. 1 Clinically, medulloepithelioma usually appears as a tumor of the ciliary body; only rarely does it arise in the optic nerve and retina. It frequently occurs on the ciliary body of a young child as a fleshy gray or pink mass, which, on examination using slit lamp biomicroscopy, often reveals cysts. These cysts impart an irregular shape to the tumor surface. 1 , 2 The tumor tends to be locally aggressive and can invade adjacent intraocular structures, but it rarely metastasizes. 1 , 3 The utility of conventional echography in the diagnosis of medulloepithelioma has been established, 4 but, to our knowledge, no reports have been published describing the ultrasonographic biomicroscopic features of medulloepithelioma. Ultrasonographic biomicroscopy (UBM) is an ideal method to analyze the anterior segment 5 ; it allows an accurate assessment of iris and ciliary body tumors, including size, tumor margins, and internal characteristics. 6 - 8 Moreover, UBM can help with the differential diagnosis of ocular tumors. In this report, we describe the UBM characteristics of medulloepithelioma.