Solitary choroidal metastasis from bronchial carcinoid

This report describes the clinical, light microscopical, and electron microscopical features of a metastasis from a bronchial carcinoid tumour occurring in a 29-year-old white woman. The eye lesions was diagnosed 30months after resection of the primary pulmonary tumour. Ophthalmoscopically the patient was observed to have a solid choroidal mass. Enucleation was carried out because of the possibility that the tumour was a primary choroidal melanoma. Enucleation was also indicated because of the relatively good prognosis for long-term survival in patients following excision of metastases from a bronchial carcinoid tumour. By light microscopy the metastasis was seen to be composed of cords; and ribbons of cells which showed positive staining characteristics for argentophilia. On electron microscopical study, neurosecretory vesicles, numerous microvilli, mitochondria, and light and dark cells, characteristic of endocrine tissue in different states of activity were noted.