Choroidal metastasis from an occult primary diagnosed by fine-needle aspiration: a case report

Choroidal masses are rarely the first presentation without the primary tumor being discovered. We described fine needle aspiration biopsy (FNAB) of a choroidal mass for diagnosis and determining the primary site. The patient, a 50-year-old Caucasian male without significant past medical history, presented with visual disturbances and headaches. Intraoperative ocular FNA was performed which was sparsely cellular showing a few loosely cohesive sheets and singly arranged epithelial cells with moderate amount cytoplasm, round large nuclei and prominent nucleoli. Immunohistochemical stainings on the cell block material showed positive staining of cytokeratin and negative staining of melanoma markers. The diagnosis of metastatic adenocarcinoma was rendered. During clinical follow up studies, the patient was found to have a PET positive lung nodule and multiple visceral metastasis.