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The incidence and distribution of retinoblastoma in Kenya
  1. Joseph M Nyamori1,2,
  2. Kahaki Kimani2,
  3. Margaret W Njuguna2,
  4. Helen Dimaras3,4
  1. 1The Ministry of Medical Services, Nairobi, Kenya
  2. 2Department of Ophthalmology, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya
  3. 3The Division of Hematology/Oncology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada
  4. 4The Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Sciences, The University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
  1. Correspondence to Dr Joseph M Nyamori, Ministry of Medical Services, Box 46344-00100, Nairobi, Kenya; joenyamori{at}yahoo.com

http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bjophthalmol-2011-300739

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    We estimated the Kenyan retinoblastoma incidence, and distribution by age, sex, family history, ethnicity and province. A nationwide chart-review identified retinoblastoma cases between 1 January 2006 and 31 December 2007 (supplementary methods). We observed 206 cases in 46 Kenyan healthcare facilities, of which 58 (28%) were lost after referral, and 148 (72%) were traceable (figure 1). We excluded 16 cases, comprising 3 missing files and 13 with histology inconsistent with retinoblastoma (figure 2), leaving 132 cases. The concordance of 91% of available histological reports with the initial clinical diagnosis indicates that initial clinical diagnosis of retinoblastoma is performed adequately.

    Figure 1

    Retinoblastoma cases observed in 2006 and 2007 (n=206). From the total number of cases clinically diagnosed as having retinoblastoma (Rb), seen over the 2-year period in 46 Kenyan healthcare facilities, we excluded cases lost after referral, with missing files or later showing histology inconsistent with Rb. This group of confirmed Rb cases was further narrowed down to the traceable population diagnosed during 2007. We added the estimated confirmed Rb cases from the untraceable study population to estimate the total number of newly diagnosed Rb cases in 2007.

    Figure 2

    Histology of excluded cases (n=13). Histopathology reports showed 13 cases clinically reported …

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    Footnotes

    • Funding Funding support was provided by Christoffel Blindenmission, Kenya.

    • Competing interests None.

    • Patient consent Obtained.

    • Ethics approval Ethics approval was provided by Kenyatta National Hospital Ethics Board, Nairobi, Kenya.

    • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

    • Data sharing statement These data can be utilised by the Kenya Ministry of Health.