Familial retinoblastoma in developing countries

Background Although screening for familial retinoblastoma has been shown to be beneficial we suspected that such screening programs may be less than optimal in developing countries (DC). Methods Retrospective cohort study comparing patients with familial retinoblastoma from five centers in DC (Argentina, Brazil, Turkey, Jordan, and Venezuela) versus a reference center in the USA. Results Ninety‐two (32 from the USA and 60 from DC) patients were included. Forty‐one (44.6%) patients avoided enucleation, 42 (45.7%) had 1 eye removed, and 9 (9.8%) underwent bilateral enucleation. Eleven (11.9%) had major pathology risk factors at enucleation. There were no cases of metastatic disease at diagnosis. Detection via screening was significantly less common in DC than in the USA (23.3% vs. 71.8%, P